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NASHVILLE -- The Morehead State men's basketball team is back on the road for an Ohio Valley Conference contest on Thursday at Belmont. Tip-off from Curb Event Center is set for 8 p.m. ET.
The Eagles, who have won six of their last nine, are 11-11 overall and 5-3 in the OVC. The Bruins, who have won all eight of their January contests, are 17-4 on the season and 8-0 in league play.
MSU and BU will be squaring off for just the second time in men’s basketball. The Bruins own a 1-0 advantage in the all-time series after escaping Johnson Arena with a 64-63 victory on Jan. 24.
Ways to follow the game:
LIVE VIDEO | LIVE AUDIO (CPU) | LIVE AUDIO (mobile) | LIVE STATS | TWITTER
The game will be webcast free of charge on OVCDigitalNetwork.com. It will also be broadcast on WIVY-96.3 FM in Morehead, MSUEagles.com (computers) and m.Morehead.EZStream.com (mobile devices). Chuck Mraz will call the play-by-play on radio.
Releases and pre-game information:
MOREHEAD STATE | BELMONT | OHIO VALLEY CONFERENCE
Ten notes heading into the contest:
THE LAST TIME OUT
Sophomore Angelo Warner poured in a career-high 24 points on Saturday, and Morehead State connected on 88 percent of its free-throw attempts en route to a 78-69 victory over Tennessee State. The Eagles improved to 11-11 overall, 5-3 in the Ohio Valley Conference and 8-3 at Johnson Arena with their sixth win in the past nine games.
DOING IT FROM THE LINE
Angelo Warner drilled 16-of-18 from the free-throw line against Tennessee State, which doubled his career high for makes. Warner also finished the contest with a team-best six rebounds, three assists and two steals. His 16 made free throws were the most by a Morehead State player since Leon Buchanan knocked down 18 on Feb. 14, 2009.
LETTING THEM STEAL ONE
Morehead State led for more than 36 minutes on Jan. 24, but Belmont used an 11-2 game-ending run to escape Johnson Arena with a 64-63 win. BU’s only lead was at 2-0 until the 1:13 mark of the second half. That’s when J.J. Mann drilled a three to give the Bruins a one-point advantage. MSU missed its final two shots in the setback.
GOING TO THE GLASS
Morehead State posted a 29-25 rebounding advantage against Tennessee State, including a 12-9 edge on the offensive glass. Over the past nine contests, the Eagles are +100 in total rebounds, +58 in offensive boards and +65 in second-chance points.
OVC TEAM RANKINGS
Morehead State ranks in the Ohio Valley Conference’s top three for steals (1st, 9.9), rebounds (1st, 37.5), offensive rebounds (1st, 14.3), rebounding margin (1st, +5.4) and assists (2nd, 14.8). The Eagles also place second in total attendance average (4,375).
A REALLY STRONG BENCH
Morehead State has tallied a 639 (29.0 pg) to 336 (15.3 pg) advantage in bench points this year. The Eagle reserves have also outscored their foes in 19 of 22 games. MSU collected just 749 bench points (22.7) all of last season.
TURNER IS PICKING IT UP
Junior Bakari Turner has posted double-figure scoring efforts in each of the past six tilts. He has averaged 14.3 points on 48 percent from the field during the stretch after averaging just 5.1 on 31 percent over his first 16 games this season.
SUCCESS AT JOHNSON ARENA
Morehead State has won 84 percent (58-11) of its games at Johnson Arena over the past five seasons, including 90 percent (35-4) in Ohio Valley Conference play.
IMPROVING ON THE ROAD
Morehead State lost eight of its first nine road games this season, but posted an Ohio Valley Conference weekend sweep over Southeast Missouri and UT Martin during its last road trip. The Eagles are 20-19 (.513) in league road affairs over the past five seasons.
WHERE WERE WE IN 2011-12?
Morehead State was 11-11 overall after 22 games last year (same in 2012-13) and 4-4 in Ohio Valley Conference play after eight league contests (one game better in 2012-13). The Eagles won their next tilt, which made the records 12-11 and 5-4. MSU finished 18-15 and 10-6.
