BOX SCORE
MOREHEAD, KY -- Jordan Lathon scored a game-high 21 points, while Riley Minix posted his OVC best seventh double-double with 17 points and career-high 19 rebounds to help lead the Morehead State men's basketball team over the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles 82-57 at home Thursday. Leading by just one (33-32) at the half, MSU outscored Tech 49-25 in the final 20 minutes.
Lathon added three steals to his 21-point game to lead the Eagles (11-4, 2-0 OVC), who have now won 13 consecutive home games and are 25-3 in January games over the past four seasons. Kalil Thomas drilled five three-pointers and scored 19 - one short of his season high. Drew Thelwell chipped in with six points, eight assists and four steals.
Morehead State shared the ball well in Thursday's game, racking up 15 assists on 29 made field goals. Thelwell, the league leader in assists, now has 52 teammate helpers in his last five games.
Morehead State did a great job disrupting Tennessee Tech shots in the contest, coming away with five blocks. MSU won its 10th straight home game versus TTU and has now defeated the Golden Eagles in Johnson Arena 17 of the past 18 meetings.
MSU also continued its torrid rebounding pace, grabbing 45 boards with a plus-25 rebound margin. The Eagles entered the night ranked seventh in the nation in rebounding margin.
David Early and Diante Wood both scored 11 to pace the visiting team.
How It Happened
After playing to a 2-2 tie, Morehead State went on a 7-0 run with 18:30 left in the first half to take a 9-2 lead. The Eagles then lost some of that lead, but still entered halftime with a 33-32 advantage. Morehead State did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 18 of its 33 points close to the basket.
Following intermission, Morehead State kept widening that lead, expanding it to 47-40 before going on a 9-0 run, finished off by Minix's layup, to grow the lead to 56-40 with 10:54 to go in the contest. Thomas nailed his fifth triple with 2:04 left to widen the lead to 77-55. Morehead State shot well from three-point range in the half, hitting seven shots from deep to score 21 of its 49 points.
Game Notes
» Morehead State found success from three point land, knocking down 10 treys in the game. The Eagles' average is right at 10 triples per game to rank in the top 30 nationally.
» Morehead State never trailed in the second half on its way to victory.
» The Morehead State defense forced 13 turnovers.
» The Eagles were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, tallying five blocks as a team.
» Morehead State cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 18 offensive boards in the game.
Up Next
Tennessee State visits Saturday for a 3 p.m. ET OVC battle.
