Women's Basketball Looks to Rebound Against Tennessee State

GAME NOTES | SCHEDULE PAGE (LINKS TO LIVE AUDIO, LIVE VIDEO AND LIVE STATS)

Morehead, Ky.-- The Morehead State women's basketball team will close out the first week of Ohio Valley Conference play Saturday afternoon in Johnson Arena when they play host to Tennessee State. Tipoff is set for 1:00 p.m. ET. The game can be heard on the Eagle Sports Network (flagship WIVY-96.3 FM) with Tom Lewis and Wes Holland on the call. It can also be seen on ESPN+ with Jared Stacy and Dean Hardin describing the action. 

Both teams will be looking to bounce back after dropping their conference openers Thursday evening. Morehead State (5-6, 0-1) fell to UT Martin 102-46. MSU and UTM played a close first quarter and the Skyhawks held a 25-21 edge after the first 10 minutes. The Skyhawks used a stifling 1-3-1 zone defense to hold the Eagles to just seven second quarter points, forcing 14 MSU turnovers in the first half. The Skyhawks used a 7-0 run in the final 1:23 of the quarter to take a 42-29 lead at the half. 

After the break, the Skyhawks got off to a fast start hitting 5-10 from the floor to race out to a 55-35 lead at the 4:54 mark. The teams traded baskets the rest of the period and UTM took a 66-45 lead into the final frame. The fourth quarter was all UT Martin; the Skyhawks scorched the nets in the final frame hitting 13-16 (81%) from the floor, including 3-5 from three-point range. The Eagles shot 8-16 (50%) from the floor in the final frame. 

MSU was led in scoring by Chrishawn Coleman with 12 points and Harley Paynter with 10.

Tennessee State (4-7,0-1) lost their conference opener 74-56 to Southern Indiana in Evansville. 

Trailing 16-15 after the first quarter, the Tigers ran off five straight to begin the second period, but Southern Indiana rallied with a 10-1 run and TSU trailed 36-28k at the half. 

The Tigers were out-scored 38-28 in the second half. For the game, TSU shot 19-60 (32%); they shot just 27% in the final 20 minutes. The Tigers also had a tough night at the free throw line going just 11-21 (52%) for the game. TSU was out-rebounded 52-34.

RECORDS
MSU 5-6,0-1  |  TSU 4-7,0-1

THE SERIES
Record vs. TSU:               41-32
Last Meeting:                    TSU won 58-50 in Evansville is OVC tournament (3/6/24)
First Meeting:                    MSU won 67-60 in Nashville (1/20/88)
Streak:                                TSU, 2 games
Record in Morehead:        25-10
Record in Nashville:         16-20
Record at Neutral Sites:    0-2

NOTABLE

• Morehead State ranks first in the Ohio Valley Conference with 12.9 steals per game (that ranks 19th nationally) and second in blocked shots (4.6 per game, 40th nationally). The Eagles rank third in the OVC in field goal percentage (.418). 

• MSU was out-rebounded 37-31 Thursday night against UT Martin. That's the first game in the last six they have lost the rebounding battle (USC-Upstate out-rebounded MSU 51-45 November 29 in Spartanburg).The Eagles are 4-1 this season when they have won the battle of the boards; the only loss coming against Bellarmine on December 8. MSU is averaging 38.6 rebounds per game which ranks fourth in the OVC. The Eagles have been especially proficient at limiting second chances to their opponents. They are third in the conference with a .715 defensive rebound percentage.

• Morehead State has slumped from three-point range as of late. In their last two Division-I games, the Eagles have shot 4-39 (10.2%) from behind the arc. On two occasions, the Eagle shot 50% from trey-land: against Jackson State on November 30 and at Louisville on November 21.

• The Eagles have markedly improved from the free throw line as the season has gone on. In their first seven games MSU made just 59.9% of their free throws. In the last four outings, the Eagles have gone 82-of-114, good for 72%.

• Kate Novik was held to 8 points Thursday against UT Martin. That's just the second game this season she has been held to single digits, the other being her nine points at Louisville on November 21. She is averaging 15.5 points per game which leads the team and ranks fourth in the OVC. She also leads the Eagles in rebounds (5.8 RPG, 8th in OVC), assists (53, 4.8 APG, 1st in OVC), steals (32,2.9 per game, 2nd in OVC), free throw percentage (79.6%, 5th in OVC), field goal percentage (51.2%, 1st in OVC), assists/turnover ratio (1.13, 8th in OVC), and defensive rebounds per game (5.3, 3rd in OVC).

• Aileen Marquez is averaging 11.5 points per game, which is second on the team and ranks 14th in the OVC. She is fifth in the conference averaging 2.1 made three-pointers per game. Teammate Harley Paynter ranks 10th in the conference averaging 1.7 made triples per game. Paynter is averaging 9.4 points per game.

• Katie Dike is tied with Novik with 11 blocked shots. They rank 7th in the OVC averaging 1.22 blocks per game. 

• Chrishawn Coleman continues to improve her game. She has scored in double figures in three of the last four games, including leading the Eagles with 12 Thursday against UT Martin. One area of improvement has been at the free throw line: sent went 8-15 (53%) from the charity stripe in MSU's first six games. In the last five outings, she has shot 22-30 (73%).

• Tennessee State is led by Freshman Somah Kamara who is averaging 16.2 points per game, which ranks third in the OVC. She has shot 67-149 from the floor to-date this season (45%, ranks 5th in the OVC). She ranks 11th in the OVC averaging 1.55 made three-point shots per game. She tossed in a career-high 29 against UNC Ashville on November 30.

• TSU ranks first in the OVC averaging just over 13.5 offensive rebounds per game. Lyric Cole leads the charge for the Tigers, grabbing 2.73 offensive boards per game.

• TSU Head Coach Candice Dupree had a 16-season career in the WNBA after a standout career at Temple. She was a seven-time All-Star and won a WNBA title with the Phoenix Merecury in 2014. She rands third in WNBA history with 2,842 made field goals, fifth with 6,895 career points and seventh with 3,149 total rebounds. She retired from the WNBA in 2021. She was hired by the San Antonio Spurs in the Fall of 2022 as a Player Development Coach, and has spent the last two seasons coaching under legendary coach Gregg Popovich