This Week's Schedule
Tuesday, January 24
Morehead State at Norfolk State, 6:00 p.m.
Thursday, January 26
*Tennessee Tech at Eastern Kentucky, 6:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
*Austin Peay at Southeast Missouri, 7:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
*Tennessee State at UT Martin, 7:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
*Eastern Illinois at Jacksonville State, 7:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
Saturday, January 28
*Tennessee Tech at Morehead State, 2:00 p.m. (ESPNU)
*SIUE at Jacksonville State, 4:30 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
*Eastern Kentucky at Tennessee State, 7:00 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
*Eastern Illinois at #9 Murray State, 7:00 p.m. (ESPN3)
*UT Martin at Austin Peay, 7:30 p.m. (OVCSports.TV)
adidas® OVC Players of the Week
PLAYER
Isaiah Canaan, G • Jr., 6-0, 193 • Biloxi, Miss. • Murray State
Canaan was named OVC Player of the Week for the fourth time this season and second time in the last three weeks after averaging 20.5 points, 3.0 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 1.0 steals/game in two Murray State road victories. The wins improved Murray State to 20-0 on the season, making them the lone undefeated team in Division I basketball, and helped the Racers climb to No. 9 in the Coaches Poll and No. 11 in the AP Top 25. In the Racers win at Morehead State, he helped the team overcome a nine-point second half deficit to win 66-60. Canaan scored seven of his 20 points in the final four minutes, including hitting a 3-pointer with 3:57 to play to put his team on top for good. The junior hit 10-of-11 (90.9%) at the charity stripe in the game and also dished out three assists. In a nationally-television game at SIUE on Saturday, he scored 21 points on 4-of-8 3-point shooting while pulling down five rebounds, dishing out three assists and netting two steals in the 82-65 victory. Canaan currently ranks seventh nationally in 3-point percentage (47.2%), 13th in 3-pointers made/game (3.0) and 28th in scoring (18.7 points/game).
Others Nominated: John Fraley, Austin Peay; Alfonzo McKinnie, Eastern Illinois; Jaron Jones, Eastern Kentucky; Tarvin Gaines, Jacksonville State; Drew Kelly, Morehead State; Mark Yelovich, SIUE; Robert Covington, Tennessee State; Jud Dillard, Tennessee Tech; Mike Liabo, UT Martin.
CO-NEWCOMER
Jerome Clyburn, G • Jr., 6-1, 205 • Orange Park, Fla. • Austin Peay
Clyburn, a transfer from Santa Fe Community College, averaged 11.0 points, 4.0 assists and 2.0 rebounds/game last week as Austin Peay won three OVC contests, including two on the road. He capped the week by hitting 12-of-14 free throws (tied for the most makes by an OVC player in a game this season) on his way to a season-high 18 points at Eastern Illinois. The junior was perfect (3-of-3) from the field and dished out three assists (with no turnovers) in the 76-64 win. At SIUE he scored 12 points, dished out a season-best seven assists, had two steals and two rebounds in an 80-67 victory. He started the week by scoring three points, grabbing three rebounds and dishing out two assists in a home win over rival Tennessee State.
CO-NEWCOMER
Kellen Thornton, F • R-Jr., 6-7, 243 • Chicago, Ill. • Tennessee State
Thornton, a transfer from Illinois State, averaged 11.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists/game in a pair of Tennessee State road games. In the 55-46 victory at Eastern Illinois, Thornton had 14 points on 5-of-7 (71.4%) shooting while also adding six rebounds, a block and a steal. He opened the week by scoring eight points, grabbing seven rebounds, blocking a shot and netting a season-high three steals in a loss to Austin Peay.
Others Nominated: Mike DiNunno, Eastern Kentucky; Dion Waiters, Jacksonville State; Latreze Mushatt, Murray State; Tyler Stone, Southeast Missouri.
FRESHMAN
Kris Davis, G • Fr., 6-2, 179 • Detroit, Mich. • SIUE
Davis earned his second OVC Freshman of the Week honor of the season after averaging 13.0 points, 4.5 assists and 2.0 rebounds/game and hitting 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from the field and 50 percent (4-of-8) from 3-point range in a pair of games. Against No. 10 Murray State in a nationally-televised game on Saturday, the freshman hit 6-of-10 shots, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range, in scoring 15 points. Davis also pulled down three rebounds and dished out four assists in 27 minutes of action. He started the week by hitting 2-of-5 3-pointers and scoring 11 points against Austin Peay; Davis also added five assists, a rebound and a steal against the Governors. On the season Davis is hitting 58.1 percent from 3-point range, which would lead all Division I players if he had enough makes/game.
Others Nominated: Joey Miller, Eastern Illinois; Darion Rackley, Jacksonville State; Angelo Warner, Morehead State; Zay Jackson, Murray State; Javon McKay, Tennessee Tech; Myles Taylor, UT Martin.
Notes From Around the League
OVC Overview/This Week's Highlights: With two wins last week and thanks to Syracuse losing to Notre Dame on Saturday, Murray State is now the only undefeated team (20-0) in Division I basketball...The Racers are 8-0 in OVC play, two games up on the rest of the league...Murray State is also 9-0 in road games this season; the nine wins are the most nationally and the team is one of just three schools (Wichita State and Kansas being the others) to be undefeated in true road games this year...Murray State rose one spot in each Top 25 poll and are now No. 9 in the ESPN/USA Today poll and No. 11 in the Associated Press poll...It is the highest-ever ranking for Murray State, who has been ranked for seven-straight weeks now...Murray State is the first OVC team to be ranked in the Top 25 since Western Kentucky in the 1970-71 season...Murray State also continues to be ranked No. 1 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25, topping the poll for the fourth week in a row on Jan. 23...Murray State's 20-0 start is the best in school history and is one of just five 10-0 or better starts in OVC history...The Racers 20-game winning streak is the third-longest streak in OVC history and they can tie the all-time record (21 by WKU) with a win this Saturday...As of Monday the Racers are No. 33 in the RPI (NCAA.com) and No. 32 in the Sagarin Power Rankings...Murray State has a 16-game home court winning streak, which is currently the ninth longest streak nationally...Entering this week the OVC was rated 21st as a conference in the RPI at RPIRatings.com; over the past decade the highest end-of-year RPI ranking for the OVC has been 19th in 2003-04 (the OVC was 21st at the end of each the 2005-06 and 2009-10 seasons)...Three upcoming Murray State home games have been added to the ESPN3 lineup as "exclusives" and will be full ESPN productions; the games are Jan. 28 (Eastern Illinois), Feb. 9 (Tennessee State) and Feb. 11 (Austin Peay)...OVC teams will find out who they will play in the annual ESPN Sears BracketBusters series next Monday (Jan. 30); it is anticipated Murray State will receive a TV game with a high-profile team and the other 10 OVC schools will find out their matchups that day as well.
Murray State No. 10 in ESPN/USA Today Top 25, No. 12 in AP Poll: After a 20-0 start to the season Murray State finds itself ranked No. 9 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Top 25 poll and No. 11 in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25. It marks the first Top 10 ranking for an OVC team since Western Kentucky was No. 7 in the final poll of the 1970-71 season. The Racers cracked the Top 25 on Dec. 12, coming in at No. 24 in the AP poll, and debuted in the Coaches Poll on Dec. 19. When Murray State first cracked the Top 25 it marked the first time an OVC team had been nationally-ranked since Murray State was No. 25 in the final AP poll of the 1997-98 season (which was released at the end of the regular season). Murray State is the first OVC team to be ranked for seven-straight weeks since the 1970-71 season (Western Kentucky was ranked in all 16 polls of that year). It is the highest ranking all-time for the Racers (the previous high was 16th, accomplished in both the 1950-51 and 1951-52 seasons). The highest ranking ever earned by an OVC men's basketball team is No. 3, accomplished by Western Kentucky in the 1948-49, 1953-54 and 1966-67 seasons.
NCAA Statistical Leaders: In the latest set of NCAA statistical leaders released on Jan. 23, Murray State ranks fifth in 3-point percentage (41.8%), eighth in steals (9.3/game), 14th in 3-point percentage defense (28.6%) and 16th in scoring margin (+14.5). Eastern Illinois ranks seventh in free throw percentage (76.8%), Southeast Missouri ranks seventh in field goal percentage (49.7%) and Eastern Kentucky is 17th in fewest turnovers (11.2/game). Individually Murray State's Isaiah Canaan is seventh in 3-point percentage (47.2%), 13th in 3-pointers made/game (3.0) and 28th in scoring (18.7 points/game). Tennessee Tech's Zac Swansey is ninth in steals (2.6/game) and 28th in assists (5.7/game). Teammate Kevin Murphy ranks 23rd in scoring (19.4 points/game) while Murray State's Donte Poole is 28th in steals (2.3/game).
20-0 Start for Murray State One of Just Five in OVC History; One Away From Record: Murray State's 20-0 start to begin this season is one of just five instances of an OVC school beginning the year 10-0 or better since the league was formed in 1948. It is the first since Western Kentucky started the year 21-0 in 1953-54. The other teams to start a season at least 10-0 are Western Kentucky in 1948-49 (15-0) and Murray State in each 1950-51 (12-0) and 1951-52 (11-0).
Longest Winning Streaks in OVC History: Murray State's current 20-game winning streak is the third-longest in OVC history, one away from the record. The longest winning streaks in league history are a pair of 21-game streaks by Western Kentucky in each the 1953-54 and 1966-67 seasons. Below is a list of all winning streak of 15 games or longer in OVC history.
21 - Western Kentucky (1953-54)
21 - Western Kentucky (1966-67)
20- Murray State (2011-12)
17 - Murray State (2009-10)
16 - Western Kentucky (1949-50)
16 - Western Kentucky (1969-70)
15 - Western Kentucky (1948-49)
Best Starts for First-Year Head Coaches: In his first year as a collegiate head coach Steve Prohm is in some good company for best starts. Prohm is currently 20-0 this season with the Racers, the fourth-best start for a Division I coach in his first season as a head coach. Below is a listing of the top starts along with the record the team finished the season with.
33-0 ... 33-1 - Bill Hodges, Indiana State (1978-79)
26-0 ... 26-0 - Norman Shephard, North Carolina (1923-24)
21-0 ... 21-1 - Lou Rossini, Columbia (1950-51)
20-0 ... TBD - Steve Prohm, Murray State (2011-12)
18-0 ... 31-5 - Jamie Dixon, Pittsburgh (2003-04)
17-0 ... 34-4 - Bill Guthridge, North Carolina (1997-98)
Undefeated on the Road: As of Monday (Jan. 23) only three Division I teams are undefeated in true road games on the season. Murray State has the most road wins among the three teams which also include Wichita State (6-0) and Kansas (4-0).
Murray State (9-0)
Wichita State (6-0)
Kansas (4-0)
Most Road Wins: Entering Monday's action (Jan. 23), Murray State's nine true road victories this season are the most of any Division I team.
9 - Murray State
8 - Cleveland State, Lehigh, Middle Tennessee, Robert Morris, Wagner
7 - Creighton, Iona, Loyola (Md.), Bucknell, Oral Roberts
TTU's Murphy and Dillard Among Top Scoring Duos Nationally: The Tennessee Tech duo of senior Kevin Murphy and junior Jud Dillard currently rank third nationally among scoring tandems in Division I basketball. Murphy currently leads the OVC (and ranks 23rd nationally) in scoring at 19.4 points/game while Dillard is third in the OVC (and 38th nationally) at 18.3 points/game. As of Monday (Jan. 23) here are the top three scoring duos nationally:
39.0 - Ken Horton (20.4) and Kyle Vinales (18.6), Central Connecticut State
38.2 - Kevin Jones (20.7) and Darryl Bryant (17.5), West Virginia
37.7 - Kevin Murphy (19.4) and Jud Dillard (18.3), Tennessee Tech
NABC and American Cancer Society to Once Again Sponsor Suits & Sneakers Weekend (Jan. 27-29): This weekend (Jan. 27-29) nearly 4,000 head and assistant basketball coaches across the U.S. are expected to swap their loafers for sneakers during the 9th annual Coaches vs. Cancer Suits & Sneakers weekend, an effort to bring awareness to the American Cancer Society's vision of a world with less cancer and more birthdays. Both high school and college basketball coaches will lace up their sneakers to spotlight the fact that cancer remains a major health concern and everyone can take daily steps to reduce their risk of the disease. Wearing sneakers is much more than a fashion statement; it's visual reminder from the coaches that prevention is key when it comes to blocking cancer before it takes center court in our lives. Coaches vs. Cancer is a collaborative initiative of the American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), empowering coaches, their teams and local communities to make a difference in the fight against cancer. Since 1993 the initiative has raised more than $75 million dollars to fund groundbreaking research, provide up-to-date cancer literacy, advocate for public health policies and deliver services to improve the quality of life for patients and their families.
OVC Tournament Tickets: Tickets for the OVC Men's & Women's Basketball Championship (Feb. 29 - March 3 at Municipal Auditorium in Nashville) are currently on sale. Now through Jan. 31 fans can call school ticket offices and get an all-session ticket (14 games) at the discounted price of just $60 (only $4.29/game). On Feb. 1 the cost of those tickets goes back to the normal price of $80. Fans can also purchase the Taco Bell Fan Package between now and Feb. 15. The package includes one general admission ticket to all 14 games, one tournament t-shirt, one game program and a $5 Taco Bell gift card. Single session tickets through Ticketmaster and Municipal Auditorium will go on sale beginning Thursday, Feb. 2. For more information on tickets visit OVCSports.com.
Murray State Ranked No. 1 in CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll: In the Jan. 23 CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major poll Murray State remained No. 1 overall for the fourth-straight week, receiving all 31 first-place votes. The Racers are the first OVC team to ever be ranked No. 1 in that poll. The Racers first vaulted into the Mid-Major Top 25 on Nov. 28 of this season and moved up to 10th on Dec. 5 before its win at Memphis. Following the win over Memphis, the Racers jumped to second where they were for three weeks before becoming No. 1 on Jan. 2. Now in its 13th season, the Mid-Major poll is made up of team's from the following conferences: America East, Atlantic Sun, Big Sky, Big South, Big West, Colonial, Great West, Horizon, Independents, Ivy, Metro Atlantic, Mid-American, Mid-Eastern, Missouri Valley, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot, Southern, Southland, Southwestern, Summit, Sun Belt and West Coast. It is voted upon by coaches from those conferences, with one coach per conference casting a vote (Eastern Kentucky's Jeff Neubauer is the OVC representative).
Home Court Winning Streaks: Entering this week Murray State has the ninth-longest home court winning streak nationally (16 games). The longest steaks nationally are below.
47 - Kentucky
36 - Ohio State
28 - North Carolina
23 - Harvard
19 - Long Island
18 - Oral Roberts
17 - Florida, Syracuse
16 - Murray State, California, Long Beach State, UCF
OVC One of Just 10 Conferences (4 Non-BCS) to Win NCAA Tournament Games in Each of Past Three Seasons: The OVC is one of just 10 Division I conferences to win a NCAA Tournament game in each of the past three years and one of just four non-BCS conferences to achieve the feat. The other non-BCS leagues to win a game in each of the last three years are the Atlantic 10, Horizon and West Coast Conferences. The ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Pac-10/12 and SEC are the BCS-level conferences that have won at least one game in each of the past three years.
OVC to Host NCAA Tournament 2nd/3rd Rounds in March: The Ohio Valley Conference will serve as the host of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Second/Third Rounds at Bridgestone Arena this March. The games will be played on Friday, March 16 and Sunday, March 18. The pairings will be announced on Sunday, March 12 at 5 p.m. CT on CBS. Tickets for the games went on sale to the public in October.
Postseason Success: Not since the late 1980s has the OVC experienced the kind of NCAA Tournament success the program has had in the last three years. After winning NCAA Tournament games in each 1987, 1988 and 1989, the OVC went 20 years without a NCAA victory. That changed in 2009 when Morehead State topped Alabama State 58-43 in front of a record crowd at the Opening Round game in Dayton, Ohio. A year later it was No. 13 seed Murray State who won, topping No. 4 seed Vanderbilt 66-65 when Danero Thomas nailed a buzzer-beater in San Jose. Last season it was Morehead State's turn again, as the Eagles were seeded 13th and sent to Denver to battle No. 4-seed Louisville. MSU got off to a 15-2 lead nearly eight minutes into the game but trailed 61-59 with 31 seconds to play. On its final possession senior Demonte Harper nailed a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 4.3 seconds remaining to give Morehead State the lead and Kenneth Faried blocked Louisville's last shot attempt to seal the victory. It marked the third time in OVC history that teams had won NCAA Tournament games in three consecutive seasons (1960-61-62, 1987-88-89 and 2009-10-11). The OVC has never won at least one NCAA Tournament game in four-straight years.
OVC Teams Beating Ranked Teams: Although the OVC has had recent success against nationally-ranked teams in the NCAA Tournament (Murray State beat No. 21 Vanderbilt in 2010 and Morehead State beat No. 14 Louisville last year), prior to Murray State's win over No. 20/21 Memphis on Dec. 11, it had been 14 years since an OVC team had beat a nationally-ranked opponent during the regular season. That was when Murray State beat No. 12 Arkansas 94-83 on Dec. 25, 1997 in Puerto Rico.
Regular Season Schedule Takes Slightly Different Format This Season: For the past six seasons and for 61 of the 63 years that basketball has been played in the OVC, the men's basketball schedule has been a double-round robin, meaning every league team played every other league team twice. That changes this year with the addition of SIUE to the regular season slate as the 11-team OVC will play a 16-game schedule instead of a 20-game round robin (which the league played from 2005-06 through 2007-08). With the 16-game schedule a team will play every other OVC school once, and play six of the 10 other schools twice (home and away) during the season. Each year there are only four teams that each school is not playing on a home and away basis. Several factors contributed to the switch to a 16-game schedule including creating more opportunity to schedule non-conference games and to have fewer games played during the month of December. The schedule's makeup (i.e. which teams played what teams twice) was determined by several factors including historical and traditional rivalries and geography/proximity of the teams. The only other previous seasons the league did not play a full round robin schedule were in 2003-04 and 2004-05 (the seasons after Jacksonville State and Samford first joined the league). The schedule could potentially see more changes next season when the league expands to 12 teams to include Belmont.
Loos is All-Time Winningest Coach in OVC History: With a 68-66 victory at Ohio on Dec. 9, 2009, Austin Peay head coach Dave Loos recorded his 320th career victory while in the OVC, a mark that ranks first all-time. Loos passed Cal Luther (319 wins at Murray State and UT Martin) for the all-time mark. Loos, the Dean of OVC coaches, is now in his 22nd year at Austin Peay where he also serves as the Athletics Director, making him the only Division I head men's basketball coach to hold that distinction. Loos is one of just 11 active Division I coaches to have coached at the same school for 20 or more years. Loos now has 359 victories in his tenure at Austin Peay and 441 for his career.
OVC Tournament Format and Home Enters Year No. 2: After debuting a new format and home for the OVC Tournament in 2011, the tournament will once again return to Municipal Auditorium in Nashville this year. Once again the top eight men's and women's teams will qualify for the tournament and advance to play in Nashville (as opposed to playing first round games in campus sites) under a merit-based format. The No. 1 and 2 seeds will receive two byes to the semifinals while the No. 3 and 4 seeds will receive one bye into the quarterfinals. The first round will include the No. 5 seed against the No. 8 seed and the No. 6 seed against the No. 7 seed.
More on Municipal Auditorium: As part of the deal to host the tournament at Municipal Auditorium, the Nashville City Council and Municipal Auditorium committed $200,000 to improvements at the venue, which opened in 1962. Among the major improvements that will be completed prior to last year's championship were upgrades to the dressing rooms, two new scoreboards and the new OVC-branded playing surface. The floor was built by Horner Sports Flooring, whose corporate headquarters are in Dollar Bay, Mich. The company has made floors for many collegiate and National Basketball Association (NBA) teams, including building the floor for the 2010 NBA All-Star Game which was held at Texas Stadium. The Horner Pro King portable floor at Municipal Auditorium was purchased for a cost of $71,960; the court will be used for the OVC Tournament, various high school games/tournaments and special events such as the Harlem Globetrotters.
Prohm Named CollegeInsider.com Hugh Durham Mid-Season Coach of the Year: After leading Murray State to its best start in 75 years, Murray State Head Coach Steve Prohm was honored by CollegeInsider.com with recognition as the mid-season Hugh Durham Award honoree. The Hugh Durham award is presented annually to the top mid-major coach in NCAA D-I basketball. The award is named after Hugh Durham who was an icon in the game with coaching stops at Florida State, Georgia and Jacksonville. Prohm is in his first season as head coach, replacing Billy Kennedy who is now the head coach at Texas A&M. Kennedy was a finalist for the Durham Award in 2010. The Hugh Durham award is named after the first and only coach in the history of NCAA Division I basketball to lead two different schools to the NCAA Final Four for the first and only time in each school's history (Florida State University in 1972 and University of Georgia in 1983). Durham is the only coach in NCAA Division I history to be the all-time winningest coach at three different schools (Florida State, Georgia, and Jacksonville). He finished is his career with 634 wins. The winner of the 2012 Hugh Durham Award will be announced on March 30 in New Orleans, site of the NCAA men's basketball championship.
OVC Against the SEC: Between the beginning of the 2000-01 season (when Tennessee Tech beat South Carolina) and the 2010 NCAA Tournament (when Murray State beat Vanderbilt) the OVC lost 71-straight games to SEC opponents. A year ago OVC teams were 0-8 against that league but this season has been different with OVC teams going 2-3 against SEC foes. That includes Tennessee State's win at South Carolina on Nov. 20 and Austin Peay's victory at Tennessee on Dec. 10.
Murray State Wins Great Alaska Shootout: Murray State traveled to Anchorage, Alaska the week of Thanksgiving and captured the championship at the 34th annual Great Alaska Shootout. The Racers topped host Alaska-Anchorage, San Francisco and Southern Miss on its way to the title. Junior Isaiah Canaan was named MVP of the event after averaging 25.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.7 steals/game at the event. Canaan scored 36 points (hitting 6-of-11 from 3-point range) in the overtime victory over Southern Miss in the title game. The 36 points was the ninth-best in Great Alaska Shootout history.
Canaan Named to Lou Henson Preseason All-American Team: Murray State junior guard Isaiah Canaan has been named to the 2011-12 Lou Henson Preseason All-America team by CollegeInsider.com. The Lou Henson Preseason All-American Team leads to The Lou Henson Award at the end of the season, which is presented to the top mid-major player in NCAA D-I basketball. The award is named in honor of Lou Henson who retired after a spectacular coaching career that lasted 41 years. When he left the game in 2005 he was sixth all-time in career Division I wins with 779. He is the winningest coach at both Illinois and New Mexico State. He is one of only 12 coaches in the history of the game to take two schools to the Final Four.
TSU's Peters on Initial Bob Cousy Watch List: Tennessee State's Wil Peters was one of 59 players on the initial 2012 Bob Cousy Award Watch List. The award is given to the top point guard in college basketball. When the list was narrowed to 20 on early January, Peters was not among those who made the cut.
The OVC Welcomes Two New Head Coaches: The OVC has two new head coaches this season, both of whom moved from assistant roles to the head spot on their respective teams. Murray State welcomes first-year head coach Steve Prohm to the top spot after he spent five years as an assistant coach with the Racers under Billy Kennedy. Long-time Tennessee Tech associate head coach Steve Payne moved to the head spot with the Golden Eagles after nine seasons under head coach Mike Sutton who retired after the end of the 2010-11 season. Prohm and Payne are two of the 25 new coaches at the Division I level who are head coaches for the first time (at any level) this season.
SIUE Ready for Full OVC Schedule This Season: On July 1, 2008 Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) became the 11th member of the Ohio Valley Conference. This season marks the first for the Cougars playing a full (16-game) OVC schedule. SIUE is eligible for the OVC Regular Season Championship but since they have one year left in the reclassification process to Division I, are ineligible for the OVC and NCAA Tournaments until next season.
Addition of Belmont Gives OVC Record 12 Schools in 2012-13: On May 13, 2011, Belmont University accepted an invitation to join the Ohio Valley Conference on July 1, 2012. Belmont, located just nine miles north of the OVC headquarters, will play its final year in the Atlantic Sun Conference this season. The Bruins men's basketball team has made four NCAA Tournament appearances in the past six season, including finishing 30-5 (one of nine Division I teams with at least 30 wins) and earning a No. 13 seed in 2010-11. The addition of Belmont (and SIUE's eligibility for postseason play next year) will give the OVC a record 12 schools for the 2012-13 season.
OVC Teams to Compete in ESPN Sears BracketBusters Series: For the seventh-straight season every OVC team will compete in the ESPN Sears BracketBusters series (on Feb. 18). Now it its 10th year, BracketBusters is an ESPN television property that was tremendously successful with its nine events. The event has allowed Division I conferences to participate in a cutting-edge format that involves "wild card" pairings from the pool of participating teams, with half of the ESPN BracketBusters teams pre-designated as "home" and the remaining half as "road" teams. This year there are 142 teams from 16 conferences in the pool of teams that were selected for one of 13 nationally-televised games. The matchups will be announced on Monday, January 30. In the OVC Austin Peay, Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Jacksonville State, Murray State and SIUE will serve as host institutions while Morehead State, Southeast Missouri, Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech and UT Martin will play road contests. OVC schools are 25-41 all-time in the BracketBusters event.
A Record Four OVC Teams in Postseason: For the first time in OVC history in 2010-11, four different men's basketball teams competed in postseason play. Morehead State won the OVC Tournament and played in the NCAA Tournament, regular season champion Murray State participated in the NIT, Austin Peay played in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) and Tennessee Tech participated in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). It also marked the third-straight season that three or more OVC teams have participated in postseason competition, also a first for the league.
Four OVC Teams Reach 20 Wins in Same Season for First Time in 2011: In 2010 (Murray State, Morehead State, Eastern Kentucky) and 2011 (Morehead State, Murray State, Austin Peay, Tennessee Tech) the OVC had three or more teams reach 20 or more wins in the same season, marking the first time in league history that had happened in back-to-back years. Last season the league had four teams win 20 or more games for the first-time ever (and each of those teams played in the postseason). Morehead State finished the year with 25 victories, Murray State had 23 and Austin Peay and Tennessee Tech had 20 wins apiece.
Former OVC Players in the NBA/NBDL: Entering the season there was one one former OVC player on a NBA roster. Former Morehead State All-American Kenneth Faried was the No. 22 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft and is in his rookie season with the Denver Nuggets. Faried was a two-time OVC Player of the Year, three-time OVC Defensive Player of the Year and set the NCAA Modern Era (since 1973) Rebounding record during his career. On Jan. 20, former Jacksonville State standout Walker Russell got the call up from the NBDL, going from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants to the Detroit Pistons. Russell was a NBDL All-Star a season ago. There are also four former OVC players playing in the NBA Development League including former Jacksonville State's Nick Murphy (Iowa Energy), Tennessee State's Bruce Price (Dakota Wizards), Tennessee Tech's Willie Jenkins (Idaho Stampede) and UT Martin's Reuben Clayton (Reno Bighorns).
The 2011-12 Season: The 2011-12 season marks the 64th of competition in the OVC. Over the previous 63 years, 12 different teams have claimed an OVC regular season championship.
Tennessee Tech's Murphy Tabbed as Preseason Player of the Year: The 2011-12 All-OVC Preseason Men's Basketball team was headlined by Tennessee Tech senior Kevin Murphy, who was a first-team All-OVC selection a season ago. Overall six different schools were represented on the team with Austin Peay, Murray State, Tennessee State and Tennessee Tech having two selections apiece. Eastern Illinois and Southeast Missouri each had one selection to round out the team. The squad features three players who were All-OVC first-team selections last season, three players who were second-team selections and four players who were selected to the All-Newcomer squad. Murphy's 17.0 points/game last season ranked third in the league and helped the high-powered Tennessee Tech offense lead the OVC in scoring (74.6 points/game). His play helped the Golden Eagles to 20 victories for the first time since 2002-03 and a berth in the OVC Tournament Championship game. Although TTU came up short in that game, they were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, marking the first postseason play for the program since 2001-02. Murphy also averaged 4.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.0 steals/game while hitting 47.8 percent from the field in 33 total contests. In addition to Murphy, Austin Peay's TyShwan Edmondson and Murray State's Isaiah Canaan were each first-team selections last year and are on the preseason team this year. The second-team selections from last year appearing on the preseason team this year were Southeast Missouri's Leon Powell and Tennessee State's Robert Covington and Kenny Moore. The Preseason All-OVC team was rounded out by Austin Peay's Anthony Campbell, Eastern Illinois' Jeremy Granger, Murray State's Ivan Aska and Tennessee Tech's Zac Swansey.
Austin Peay Picked as Preseason Favorites: In a vote of OVC head men's basketball coaches and sports information directors Austin Peay received 10 first-place votes and was picked as the favorite for the 2011-12 season. It marks the first time since the 2007-08 season that the Governors have been picked as the preseason favorite (the team went on to win the OVC Championship that year). Austin Peay received 185 total points, which was four points ahead of Tennessee Tech, who received eight total first-place votes and were picked second. Defending regular season champion Murray State picked up three first-place votes and was picked third (169), Tennessee State was picked fourth (145), defending tournament champion Morehead State received the other first-place vote and was tabbed fifth (128) and was followed by Southeast Missouri (106), Eastern Kentucky (90), UT Martin (73), Eastern Illinois (67), Jacksonville State (40) and SIUE (27).
Preseason Predictions: Is being picked the preseason favorite always a good thing? Over the past 32 years of preseason polls that were available, the league's head coaches and sports information directors correctly picked the eventual OVC regular season champion 62.5 percent of the time, picking the correct winner 20 times over the past 32 years. Over the past 11 years, the preseason poll has correctly picked the winner six times. Last season the poll tabbed Murray State to win the regular season championship, which is did. It marked the first time in the last decade that the preseason poll had predicted the champion correctly in back-to-back years.
Westwood One to Broadcast OVC Championship Game: For the third consecutive season, the 2012 Men's Basketball Championship game will be broadcast by the Westwood One radio network, the largest provider of audio content in America. Westwood One is one of the nation's largest providers of network radio programming and one of the largest domestic providers of traffic information in the U.S. Westwood One serves more than 5,000 radio and 170 TV stations in the U.S. Westwood One provides over 150 news, sports, music, talk and entertainment programs, features and live events to numerous media partners. Westwood One is home of the most prestigious sports broadcasts on radio. Westwood One's lineup includes regular season NFL football, the Playoffs and the Super Bowl; NCAA Football and Basketball including the Final Four; College World Series; Frozen Four; the Olympics; the Masters and more. Through its Metro Traffic division, Westwood One provides traffic reporting and local news, sports and weather to approximately 2,300 radio and TV stations. Westwood One also provides digital and other cross-platform delivery of its network and Metro content.
Replay Systems for OVC Basketball Venues Enter Year Five: On Dec. 21, 2007, the Ohio Valley Conference mandated the use of courtside replay systems at all OVC basketball venues. The systems were put into place in January 2008 and have been used since. The systems are used in situations that are outlined by NCAA rules.
OVCSports.TV: For the sixth consecutive year, fans can watch nearly every Conference matchup and all non-conference home contests this season at OVCSports.TV. The venture with NeuLion (formerly JumpTV Sports) allows fans to access live and on-demand streaming video and audio of conference matchups (excluding only national television games which are not available) on their home computer. The premium Web site was launched in July 2006 and has streamed over 1,000 events in its first four years, including all Conference matchups in football and men's and women's basketball as well as select baseball, soccer, softball and volleyball events and OVC Championship events. Packages are available on a yearly, seasonal, monthly or per-event basis.
Team Notes
Austin Peay: After starting OVC play 0-3, Austin Peay has rebounded to win its last five Conference games and is now tied for third place in the league...Only once in eight OVC games have the Govs allowed an opponent to score more than 70 points in a game (nationally-ranked Murray State scored 87)...The Governors started the week by topping Tennessee State 69-63 and then went on the road to beat SIUE (80-67) and Eastern Illinois (76-64)...The wins at SIUE and EIU marked the team's first back-to-back road victories of the season and the squad has compiled a 5-1 record so far in the month of January...Senior center John Fraley averaged 11.0 points and 8.7 rebounds/game last week; he scored 16 points and blocked two shots against Tennessee State and had 13 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks in the road win over SIUE...The 15 rebounds were a season-high for Fraley and the third-most by a player in the OVC this season...Junior point guard Jerome Clyburn made 12 free throws at Eastern Illinois (tied for the OVC single-game best this year) on his way to a season-high 18 points; for the week the newcomer averaged 11.0 points and 4.0 assists/game while hitting 16-of-18 (88.9%) at the charity stripe...Austin Peay ranks second in the OVC in blocks (3.9/game) and third in rebounding (34.2/game)...This week Austin Peay will play at Southeast Missouri (the team who is just one game ahead of them in the standings) on Thursday night and host UT Martin on Saturday.
Eastern Illinois: Eastern Illinois dropped two home games last week and has now lost three in a row after winning three in a row to start 2012...It marked only the second and third home loss of the season for the Panthers who are now ninth in the OVC standings...In the game against Austin Peay, sophomore Alfonzo McKinnie had his second career double-double by scoring 15 points and grabbing 14 rebounds (9 of which came on the offensive glass)...In that contest APSU hit 21-of-29 free throws while EIU was only 8-of-12 from the line...In the Tennessee State game, freshman Joey Miller scored 19 points and grabbed five rebounds to lead the Panthers...Unfortunately the team struggled from 3-point range in that game, hitting just 3-of-21 (14.3%) attempts)...Eastern Illinois continues to shoot free throws well, leading the OVC and ranking seventh nationally at 76.8%...The Panthers rank second in the OVC in assists (14.1/game) and rebounding (34.4/game)...This week Eastern Illinois will go on the road for games at Jacksonville State (Thursday) and at nationally-ranked Murray State on Saturday (seen exclusively on ESPN3).
Eastern Kentucky: Eastern Kentucky won a pair of home games last week to improve to a perfect 8-0 at McBrayer Arena on the season...The team is 5-3 in OVC play, just one loss out of second place in the OVC standings...The Colonels topped UT Martin 86-78 in double overtime on Thursday and stepped out of Conference play to defeat Longwood 78-71 on Sunday...The team is now 29-7 (80.6%) in non-conference home games under seventh year head coach Jeff Neubauer...In the victory over UT Martin the team recorded season-highs in both free throws made (27) and attempted (35)...Senior Jaron Jones averaged 21.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steals/game last week while hitting 57.1 percent (16-of-28) from the field...Jones, who currently ranks 25th nationally in field goal percentage (57.3%), had 20 points in the win over UTM and 23 in the Longwood victory...In the UTM game, Jones hit 9-of-10 at the free throw line...Junior newcomer Mike DiNunno averaged 12.0 points, 1.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.5 steals/game in the pair of wins, including scoring six consecutive points in the second overtime period against the Skyhawks (overall 8 of his 10 points in that game came in the two overtime periods)...EKU ranks 17th nationally in fewest turnovers/game (11.2)...Among OVC teams Eastern is second in turnover margin (+2.6) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (29.1%)...This week the Colonels will host Tennessee Tech on Thursday night and travel to Tennessee State for a Saturday matchup.
Jacksonville State: Jacksonville State played just once this week, going on the road to top Tennessee Tech 63-62...The win was the first in 10 road games this season and snapped a 13-game road losing streak dating back to February of last season...After losing Stephen Hall (dismissal) and Frankie Bougher (transfer) during the week, the team had only nine players dressed for the game...The Gamecocks led by as many as 12 points in the first half before falling behind by six in the second half...The team trailed 61-57 with 19 seconds left when Brian Williams hit a 3-pointer and JSU fouled Tech sending them to the line for two shots...TTU's Kevin Murphy made 1-of-2 shots before Darion Rackley rebounded the ball, raced up the court and found junior Dion Waiters who made a basket and was fouled with one second left...Waiters made the free throw, giving his team the 63-62 victory...Waiters finished the game with nine points, two rebounds and two assists...Rackley had 11 points and three rebounds off the bench while Tarvin Gaines led the team with 15 points...Jacksonville State leads the OVC in field goal percentage defense (41.8%) and is third in 3-point field goal percentage defense (30.4%) and blocks (3.5/game)...After a week layoff, Jacksonville State returns to action on Thursday when it begins a three-game home stand with Eastern Illinois...The team will then host SIUE on Saturday afternoon.
Morehead State: Morehead State split a pair of home games last week, losing to No. 10 Murray State 66-60 before topping UT Martin 62-56 on Saturday...The Eagles are now 4-4 in Conference play, tied for sixth place in the standings...The Eagles gave the nationally-ranked Racers all they could handle, leading by 11 points in the first half and nine points with 12:59 to play in the game...Morehead State hit 44.2 percent (19-of-43) from the field and out-rebounded (30-to-28) Murray State in the game...It marked the first time a nationally-ranked team had played in Johnson Arena (built in 1981) and the game was played in front of 6,036 fans...Sophomore Drew Kelly was perfect on the night hitting 6-of-6 field goals, 2-of-2 3-pointers and 6-of-6 at the free throw line to score 20 points before fouling out; Kelly also added six rebounds and blocked two shots...Kelly added 14 points and 10 rebounds in the win over UT Martin and for the week averaged 17.0 points and 8.0 rebounds/game for the week while hitting 70.6 percent (12-of-17) from the field...MSU is +77 in the rebounding department over its opponents in the last 14 games...Morehead State ranks second in the OVC in scoring defense (63.6), steals (8.7/game) and rebounding margin (+2.3)...This week Morehead State will travel to Norfolk State for a non-conference game on Tuesday night before returning home to play Tennessee Tech on Saturday in a game seen on ESPNU...Morehead State lost 66-55 at TTU earlier this season (Jan. 7)...The Eagles are 37-4 (90.2%) at home in OVC games over the past five seasons.
Murray State: With two wins last week Murray State improved to 20-0 on the season, and thanks to a Syracuse loss at Notre Dame the Racers are currently the only Division I team to be undefeated...MSU is also 9-0 in road games this year, the most road victories on any Division I team and they are one of only three teams who are unbeaten on the road this year (Wichita State and Kansas are the others)...The Racers are now No. 9 in the ESPN/USA Today poll and No. 11 in the AP Top 25 poll...The team is also still No. 1 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 (for the fourth-straight week)...Murray State came from behind to beat Morehead State (66-60) last Wednesday and then won at SIUE (82-65) on Saturday...The team reached 20 wins for the 25th time in its history and the third year in a row...Isaiah Canaan earned his fourth OVC Player of the Week honors of the season after averaging 20.5 points, 3.0 assists and 2.5 rebounds/game; he had 20 points at MSU and 21 at SIUE...The Racers rank fifth nationally in 3-point percentage (41.8%), eighth in steals (9.3/game), 14th in 3-point defense (28.6%) and 16th in scoring margin (+14.5)...With one more win, the Racers will tie the OVC all-time record for consecutive wins and winning streak to start the season (both held by Western Kentucky)...Murray State's only game this week is Saturday when they host Eastern Illinois (ESPN3 exclusive); the Racers currently have a 16-game home court winning streak, the ninth-longest streak nationally...MSU is 39-5 in OVC games over the last 3 years...The team's home games with EIU (Jan. 28), TSU (Feb. 9) and APSU (Feb. 11) have been added as ESPN3 exclusives and will air on that streaming platform.
Southeast Missouri: Southeast Missouri State played just once last week, losing a road contest at Tennessee Tech on Saturday night...The loss snapped a two-game winning streak for the Redhawks and was just the second loss in Conference play for the team...Even with the loss the team has won six of its last eight games overall and is in sole possession of second place in the OVC standings (half a game ahead of Eastern Kentucky and Austin Peay)...The loss to Tech continued the team's road struggles this year as Southeast is just 2-7 in true road games this season...Sophomore newcomer Tyler Stone had 14 points and nine rebounds in the loss; he has scored in double figures in 13-straight starts for the team and ranks fourth in the OVC in rebounding (6.9/game) and eighth in scoring (15.1/game)...Marland Smith added 14 points and four assists while Marcus Brister led the team with 15 points and six assists in 36 minutes of action...The 62 points scored by Southeast was the lowest in a Conference game this season...Southeast Missouri ranks seventh nationally in field goal percentage (49.7%)...In OVC rankings the team is also first in assists (15.8/game) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.2)...In its lone game of the week, Southeast Missouri will host Austin Peay (who has won five-straight games) on Thursday night at the Show Me Center...The winner of the game will be in second place in the OVC standings.
SIUE: SIUE hosted a pair of the top teams in the OVC last week, losing games to Austin Peay (80-67) and No. 10 Murray State (82-65) last week...The highlight of the week was hosting a nationally-televised game (ESPNU) with nationally-ranked Murray State, the first nationally-televised game in school history...SIUE packed the crowd with 4,157 fans (a sellout) but could not top the undefeated Racers...Junior Mark Yelovich had 17 points and 11 rebounds while Derian Shaffer scored 12 points and grabbed 11 boards...Freshman Kris Davis scored 15 points on 2-of-3 3-point shooting and was named OVC Freshman of the Week for the second time this season; for the week Davis averaged 13.0 points, 4.5 assists and 2.0 rebounds/game as he scored 11 points in the APSU contest...Against Austin Peay Yelovich became a member the 12th member of the SIUE 1,000-Point Club as he scored a game-high 20 points against the Govs (his 13th career 20-point game)...For the week Yelovich averaged 18.5 points and 9.5 rebounds/game while hitting 56.7 percent (17-of-30) from the field...SIUE ranks second in the OVC in 3-point percentage (37.9%)...This week SIUE will play a road game at Jacksonville State on Saturday.
Tennessee State: Tennessee State played twice last week, losing at Austin Peay (69-63) on Monday before traveling to Eastern Illinois and winning 55-46...The victory over Eastern Illinois snapped a nine-game OVC road losing streak that dated back to January of last season...The TSU defense limited Eastern Illinois to just 36.4 percent (20-of-55) from the field and 14.3 percent (3-of-21) from 3-point range...Three Tigers scored in double figures as Kellen Thornton came off the bench to score a team-high 14 points and also grab six rebounds...Thornton was named OVC Co-Newcomer of the Week after averaging 11.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.0 steals/game in the two games last week...In the loss to Austin Peay, junior Robert Covington had 30 points and 15 rebounds in netting his OVC-best sixth double-double of the season...It marked his second 30-point effort of the season (and one of nine overall in the league this year)...Covington averaged 20.5 points and 9.5 rebounds/game last week while hitting 53.6 percent from the field; he ranks second in the OVC in rebounding (8.0/game) and fourth in scoring (17.9/game) and blocks (1.2/game)...Covington now has 119 career 3-pointers, 10th in TSU history...Tennessee State ranks first in the OVC in rebounding (35.0/game) and rebounding margin (+4.0)...Tennessee State will travel to UT Martin for a Thursday contest and then host Eastern Kentucky on Saturday...This week will begin a stretch where the team plays three games in five days (TSU also plays next Monday at home against Austin Peay).
Tennessee Tech: Tennessee Tech completed a stretch of four out of five games at home last week by hosting Jacksonville State and Southeast Missouri...The Golden Eagles lost on a last-second old-fashioned 3-point play to Jacksonville State (63-62) before rebounding to top Southeast Missouri (77-62) on Saturday...The team is now 4-3 in OVC play, placing them fifth in the standings...Junior Jud Dillard, who ranks first in the OVC in rebounding (8.7/game) and third in scoring (18.3 points/game), averaged 18.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists/game last week including going for 21 points and 13 rebounds in the JSU contest; Dillard now has five double-doubles on the season, second most in the OVC...Dillard needs just 35 points to become the 34th member of the TTU 1,000-Point Club...Dillard and senior Kevin Murphy (who leads the OVC and ranks 23rd nationally in scoring at 19.4 points/game) are currently the No. 3 scoring duo in the nation, combining for 37.7 points/game...Point guard Zac Swansey ranks ninth in the nation in steals (2.6/game) and 28th in assists (5.7/game)...Freshman Javon McKay had a career-high 15 points against Jax State while also contributing four rebounds and two steals; for the week he averaged 9.5 points and 3.5 rebounds/game...Tennessee Tech ranks second in the OVC in scoring (73.1) and scoring margin (+1.8)...Tennessee Tech will play a pair of road games this week when they travel to Eastern Kentucky (Thursday) and Morehead State (Saturday); the MSU game will be seen nationally on ESPNU.
UT Martin UT Martin suffered a pair of road losses last week, falling 86-78 in double overtime at Eastern Kentucky on Thursday and losing 62-56 at Morehead State on Saturday...The team is now 1-11 in road games this season and has lost nine in a row and 13 of its last 14 games overall...Four of the team's last five losses, however, have been by eight or fewer points...In the overtime loss at EKU, the Skyhawks were down four points with 42 seconds left in regulation before Mike Liabo and Omari Minor scored basket to force the first overtime period...In the first overtime UTM led by three points with 15 points left before EKU rallied to force the second overtime...Liabo led the way with 23 points for the Skyhawks, his fourth 20-plus point outing of the season; at Morehead State the sophomore added 12 points and a career-high nine rebounds while also dishing out four assists...Freshman Myles Taylor had his third double-double of the season at EKU, scoring 15 points and pulling down 12 rebounds in 38 minutes of action; for the week he averaged 9.5 points and 8.0 rebounds/game...Troy King had a game-high 15 points in the MSU loss on Saturday...UT Martin will host Tennessee State on Thursday night and then travel to Austin Peay for a Saturday night contest.