Men's Basketball Strives for Continued Success Saturday, Hosting Jacksonville State
By Matt Schabert, Morehead State Athletic Media Relations
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MOREHEAD, Ky. -- Looking to keep up its success recently, especially at home, Morehead State's men's basketball team hosts Jacksonville State Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.
The Eagles have won two straight games, including a 57-54 win over Tennessee Tech Thursday, and are 5-1 at home this season. Jacksonville State enters at 7-3 overall and 3-1 in the league after falling by three in overtime at EKU Thursday. Morehead State will look to reverse its recent fortunes against Jacksonville State. The Eagles lead the all-time series 23-17, but JSU has won seven straight in the series and five straight in games played at Johnson Arena.
The game will air live on ESPN+ as well as MSUEagles.com (WIVY-96.3 FM audio).
LAST TIME AGAINST JACKSONVILLE STATE (Box Score)
Senior guard
Jordan Walker scored a team-high 22 points and also nabbed seven rebounds, but Morehead State's men's basketball team fell behind big in the first half and could not fully recover Jan. 25, 2020 in a 72-51 setback at Jacksonville State's Pete Mathews Coliseum. The Eagles, who were even with the Gamecocks in the second period at 29-29, slipped behind 43-22 after the first 20 minutes.
INSIDE THE SERIES
Record vs. Jacksonville State: 23-17
First Meeting: March 4, 1939 (JSU won 53-40)
Streak: JSU, 7 games
Record in Jacksonville: 10-8
Record in Morehead: 12-8
Last 5 Meetings
1/18/18 MOREHEAD, KY. L 58-57
1/26/19 MOREHEAD, KY. L 77-71
2/21/19 Jacksonville, Ala. L 65-64
1/2/20 MOREHEAD, KY. L 76-72
1/25/20 Jacksonville, Ala. L 72-51
NOTABLE
• With a 61-56 win at Murray State Saturday, Morehead State halted its 13-game losing streak to the Racers in games at Murray. It also snapped Murray State's 25-game home winning streak, which was fifth in the nation at the time.
• Junior forward Jaylen Sebree scored a career-high nine points, including five straight late in the second half, against Tennessee Tech. Sebree had not scored in the first 10 MSU games this year but now has 14 points in the last two games.
• DeVon Cooper's 19 points at Murray State was a career high. Cooper leads Morehead State with nine double-figure scoring games.
• DeVon Cooper and KJ Hunt, Jr., led the Eagles with 10 points apiece in the win over Tennessee Tech, but both scored their ninth and 10th points with less than 25 seconds left. The Eagles nearly pulled off the victory with no double-figure scorers.
• In the past seven games, Morehead State has only allowed opponents to score 59.6 points per game and shoot 39 percent. In fact, if you eliminate the Eagles' games with top-25 foes Kentucky, Richmond, Ohio State and Clemson, the Eagles only allow 60.4 points per game while foes shoot just 28 percent from three-point range, and MSU has a +10.9 rebound margin in those games not against the top 25 teams.
• In OVC games only, Morehead State ranks first in the conference in scoring defense (62.4), rebound defense (30.4), rebound margin (+7.2) and blocked shots (24).
• Senior forward James Baker ranks fourth in Morehead State history in blocked shots. He has 113 career rejections, needing just three more to move into the top three past George Williams (1973-74).
• Johni Broome is the top freshman rebounder in the conference (6.6/game). In fact, he is the only freshman ranked in the top 20 in rebounds per game.
• Morehead State is 5-1 at home in 2020-21 and boasts a +11.3 scoring margin and +13.0 rebound margin in home games.
• Morehead State averages 63.1 points per game and 29 of those on average come in the paint. With the exception of 10 at Ohio State, the Eagles have not scored less than 20 in the paint in the other 11 games.
