Men's Basketball Edges Tennessee Tech 57-54

BOX SCORE

MOREHEAD, Ky. -- Morehead State men's basketball's defensive pressure was in play again on Thursday night as the Eagles limited Tennessee Tech to just 37 percent overall and 26 percent from long range in earning a 57-54 victory over the Golden Eagles at Johnson Arena.

The Eagles (6-6/3-2 OVC) battled back and forth with the visitors from Cookeville, Tenn., before finally pulling ahead for good thanks to a bucket and a three-pointer from junior forward Jaylen Sebree with less than two minutes to play. Tech slipped to 1-11 overall and 1-4 in the OVC, and Morehead State continued its prowess over the Golden Eagles in games played aT Johnson Arena. MSU now has seven straight home wins over TTU and 14 of the last 15 since 2007.

KEY MOMENTS
- Damaria Franlkin pushed Tech into a 49-48 lead with 4:39 to play, but Tech never hit another field goal until a three-pointer by Jr. Clay made it a 55-54 MSU lead with 15 seconds remaining.
- Sebree, who scored a career-high nine points, hit a layup with 1:39 left for a 50-49 advantage. With 36 ticks left, he caught a pass from junior guard DeVon Cooper in the far corner and buried his first three-ball as an Eagle.
- Junior guard KJ Hunt, Jr., hit a pair of free throws with 25 seconds showing on the game clock as MSU led 55-54. Clay then knocked down a long range bomb from about 30 feet out for a one-point game.
- Cooper missed the front end of a one-and-one free toss with 12 second left, giving Tech the ball. However, Clay's attempt at a game-winning shot was thwarted when he was whistled for an offensive foul with two seconds left.
- Hunt's triple with 10:45 left in the first half capped a 9-0 Eagle run as they led 15-7.
- Morehead State led 20-14, but Keishawn Davidson's bucket at the 3:29 mark of the first half gave Tech its first lead (21-20) since early. TTU went on to lead 28-25 at the half.

KEY STATS
- Cooper and Hunt finished with 10 point apiece to lead the Eagles. Both scored their 10th points in the final 25 seconds as the Eagles nearly won with no double-figure scoring outputs.
- Morehead State has now held its last seven opponents to an average of 59 points per game during that span.
- MSU hit 12 of 15 free throws and out-rebounded Tech 35-31. It was the eighth opponent out of 12 that MSU has out-rebounded this season.
- Clay finished with a game-high 20 points for Tennessee Tech.
- Senior forward James Baker grabbed a season-high 10 rebounds (career high is 11) and scored eight points.
- Sebree entered the night with just five points to his credit on the season, all scored in the Eagles' win at Murray State last time out.

UP NEXT
The Eagles return to action on Saturday when Jacksonville State visits. Game time is 4 p.m. ET.