GAME NOTES | LIVE AUDIO | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS | TICKETS

MOREHEAD, Ky. -- Looking to rebound from the season opener, Morehead State men's basketball returns to action Friday night against Richmond at Rupp Arena at 6 p.m. ET as part of the Bluegrass Showcase. Due to a schedule change, it will be the lone game in the historic arena Friday.

The Eagles fell to No. 10 Kentucky 81-45 to open the year Wednesday, while Richmond had its game with Detroit Mercy wiped out due to COVID-19 concerns with Detroit. The Spiders were 25-8 in 2019-20 under 16th year head coach Chris Mooney.

Friday's game can be heard live on the Eagle Sports Radio Network (WIVY-96.3 FM) with live audio on MSUEagles.com. The game will be streamed through YouTube live.

KENTUCKY GAME HIGHLIGHTS



GAME NOTES

• Morehead State matches up with Richmond for only the second time in program history. The 13th-seeded Eagles and 12th-seeded Spiders both pulled second-round upsets in the 2011 NCAA Tournament and met on March 19, 2011 where Richmond prevailed 65-48 in the Pepsi Center in Denver.

• Morehead State is 7-23 all-time against teams from the current Atlantic 10 Conference alignment and have faced 10 of the 14 programs in the Eagles' history.

• Morehead State joins five other OVC schools - Austin Peay, Jacksonville State, Eastern Kentucky, Southeast Missouri and UT Martin - with three players who are eligible this year who already have at least one season of Division I experience. The Eagles have KJ Hunt, Jr. (McNeese State), Jaylen Sebree (Florida Atlantic) and Skyelar Potter (Wright State.)

• Senior forward James Baker, Jr. is the lone senior listed on the roster. DeVon Cooper is also a fourth-year player but redshirted in 2019-20 due to injury and is a redshirt junior. It marks the lowest number of seniors on a Preston Spradlin-coached roster since his first year in 2017-18 when there were no seniors.

• James Baker, Jr. enters the game ranked fourth in career blocked shots in program history with 105. As a sophomore in 2018-19, his 55 rejections led the OVC in games against league foes.

• Freshman forward Johni Broome scored a team-high 11 points in his collegiate debut Wednesday against Kentucky. It marks the second straight season a freshman has notched a double-figure scoring game in the season opener. Tyzhaun Claude had 13 in his debut last year versus Samford.

• Sophomore guard Julius Dixon came off the bench to notch a team (and career) high 11 points against Kentucky. Dixon easily surpassed his career high in minutes with 28 (previous was 17).

• Morehead State has a 2-7 record in multi-team events in the last two seasons. The Eagles took part in the 2K Empire Classic in 2018-19 and the Hall of Fame Classic last season.

• Sophomore guard Jacob Rice made a short appearance in the Kentucky game. He is the first alum of Johnson Central High School (in Paintsville, Ky.) to appear in a Division I game since Jody Salisbury for Eastern Kentucky in 1991-92.

• Four Eagles have prior experience on the Rupp Arena court. James Baker, Jr. (Meade County), Jaylen Sebree (Christian County), Jacob Rice (Johnson Central) and Skyelar Potter (Bowling Green Central) all played in the KHSAA Sweet 16 in Lexington during their prep careers.