OVC Men's Basketball Report - December 26

OVC Men's Basketball Report - December 26


• OVC Men’s Basketball Report – December 26 (PDF)
 
This Week’s Schedule
 
Tuesday, December 27
Covenant at Tennessee State, 7:00 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)

Wednesday, December 28
UVa-Wise at Eastern Kentucky, 6:00 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
Asbury at Morehead State, 6:00 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
Missouri S&T at SIUE, 7:00 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
Austin Peay at Western Kentucky, 7:00 p.m. (FOX College Sports)

Thursday, December 29
Henderson State at Southeast Missouri, 5:00 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
Brescia at Murray State, 7:00 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
*Jacksonville State at UT Martin, 7:30 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)

Saturday, December 31
*Tennessee State at Murray State, 11:00 a.m. (CBS Sports Network)
*Belmont at Austin Peay, 2:30 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
*Eastern Kentucky at Southeast Missouri, 2:30 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
*Tennessee Tech at SIUE, 2:30 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
*Jacksonville State at Eastern Illinois, 3:15 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
*Morehead State at UT Martin, 6:00 p.m. (OVC Digital Network)
 
 
adidas® OVC Players of the Week
 
PLAYER
Xavier Moon, G • 6-2, 165, Sr. • Goodwater, Ala. • Morehead State
Moon recorded the first triple-double in Morehead State history last Monday when he scored 25 points, dished out 11 assists and pulled down 10 rebounds as MSU topped Central Arkansas 111-85 to snap an eight-game losing streak. It marked the 15th triple-double in OVC history. In that game, Moon hit 9-of-13 field goals (69.2) and 5-of-6 3-pointers (83.3%). Three days later he added 22 points, five assists, three steals and three rebounds at Mississippi State in a game the Eagles led by 10 at halftime before ultimately losing by nine. Moon hit 9-of-14 field goals (64.3%) in the contest. For the week, the senior averaged 23.5 points, 8.0 assists, 6.5 rebounds and 2.0 steals/game while hitting 66.7 percent (18-of-27) from the field, 58.3 percent (7-of-12) from 3-point range and 100 percent (4-of-4) from the free throw line. Moon currently ranks third in the OVC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.4) and eighth in scoring (15.2 points/game).
 
Others Nominated: Josh Robinson, Austin Peay; Evan Bradds, Belmont; Montell Goodwin, Eastern Illinois; Asante Gist, Eastern Kentucky; Terrell Miller, Murray State; Antonius Cleveland, Southeast Missouri; Carlos Anderson, SIUE; Tahjere McCall, Tennessee State; Kedar Edwards, UT Martin.
 
NEWCOMER
Terrell Miller, F • 6-8, 250, Jr. • Jacksonville, Fla. • Murray State
Miller, the transfer from Southwest Mississippi State Junior College, had 21 points and 11 rebounds in Murray State’s game against Wright State last week. The junior hit a team-best 4-of-8 3-pointers and 5-of-7 free throw attempts in 33 minutes of action. Miller currently ranks ninth in the OVC in rebounding (7.2/game) and 13th in scoring (14.2 points/game)
 
Others Nominated: Muusa Dama, Eastern Illinois; Dillon Avare, Eastern Kentucky; Kahari Beaufort, UT Martin.
 
FRESHMAN
Jordan Walker, G • 6-1, 177, Fr. • Indianapolis, Ind. • Morehead State
Walker averaged 12.5 points and 2.5 rebounds/game off the bench last week as Morehead State topped Central Arkansas to snap an eight-game losing streak and led Mississippi State by double digits at halftime before ultimately falling by nine points. Walker had a season-best 15 points on 4-of-7 3-point shooting in the win over UCA; in that contest he had two rebounds and an assist in 25 minutes. He added 10 points and three rebounds at Mississippi State in 19 minutes.
 
Others Nominated: Asante Gist, Eastern Kentucky.
 
 
Notes From Around the League
 
OVC Overview/This Week’s Highlights: Conference play begins this week with one game on Thursday night (Jacksonville State at UT Martin) with a full slate of six games on New Year’s Eve... After UT Martin senior Kedar Edwards recorded the 14th triple-double in OVC history last Saturday, three days later Morehead State senior Xavier Moon netted the 15th triple-double when he had 25 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists against Central Arkansas...UT Martin is off to a 10-5 overall start on the season; the 10 wins are the most among OVC teams so far this season; it marks the first time the team has won double-digit non-conference games since 1986-87...First-year UTM head coach Anthony Stewart is the fastest coach in program history to 10 victories...UTM’s win at UMKC last Tuesday was the 24th road win for the program since the start of the 2014-15 season, which is tied with Albany for the second-highest total in Division I basketball behind only Monmouth (27)...Four OVC teams are in the Top 150 of the RPI entering this week: Tennessee State (53), UT Martin (114), Belmont (141) and Jacksonville State (145).
 
UTM’s Edwards, Morehead State’s Moon Record 14th and 15th Triple-Doubles in OVC History: UT Martin senior Kedar Edwards recorded the 14th triple-double in OVC history on Dec. 17 when he had 15 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists against Bethune-Cookman. Two days later it was Morehead State senior Xavier Moon who netted the 15th triple-double in league history when he had 25 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists against Central Arkansas on Dec. 19. As of Dec. 26 they are two of just 15 in Division I this season. Below are a list of all-time OVC triple-doubles.
            Lorenzo Coleman, Tennessee Tech vs. Oral Roberts (12/21/94) - 18 pts., 11 reb., 10 blocks
            Van Usher, Tennessee Tech vs. Eastern Kentucky (2/24/92) - 16 pts., 10 reb., 14 asst.
            Bud Eley, Southeast Missouri vs. Morehead State (1/4/99) - 24 pts., 14 reb., 10 blocks
            Trenton Hassell, Austin Peay vs. Morehead State (2/2/99) - 19 pts., 13 reb., 10 asst.
            Trenton Hassell, Austin Peay vs. Tennessee State (2/26/00) - 19 pts., 11 reb., 10 asst.
            Trenton Hassell, Austin Peay vs. UT Martin (2/22/01) - 27 pts., 13 reb., 12 asst.
            Brandon Griffin, Southeast Missouri vs. Oakland City (12/13/03) - 12 pts., 12 reb., 10 asst.
            Walker Russell, Jacksonville State vs. Eastern Kentucky (2/28/06) - 21 pts., 11 reb., 11 asst.
            Lester Hudson, UT Martin vs. Central Baptist (11/13/07) - 25 pts., 12 reb., 10 asst., 10 steals       
            Lester Hudson, UT Martin vs. Southeast Missouri (2/16/08) - 26 pts., 12 reb., 10 asst.
            Isacc Miles, Murray State vs. UT Martin (2/24/09) - 13 pts., 10 reb., 11 asst.
            Chris Horton, Austin Peay vs. Berea (11/16/14) - 15 pts., 13 reb., 10 blocks
            Deville Smith, UT Martin vs. Northwestern State (3/19/15) - 21 pts., 12 reb., 11 asst.
            Kedar Edwards, UT Martin vs. Bethune-Cookman (12/17/16) - 15 pts., 10 reb., 11 asst.
            Xavier Moon, Morehead State vs. Central Arkansas (12/19/16) - 25 pts., 10 reb., 11 asst.
 
NCAA Stats Leaders: In the most recent set of NCAA statistical leaders (Dec. 26), Jacksonville State ranks eighth nationally in 3-point percentage (42.2%) while Eastern Illinois is sixth in turnover margin (+5.9/game), seventh in forced turnovers/game (18.38) and 15th in steals (9.1/game). Belmont is 14th in 3-pointers made/game (10.0). Individually, JSU’s Erik Durham is fourth in 3-point percentage (53.8%), while Tennessee State’s Tahjere McCall is seventh in steals (2.91/game). Austin Peay’s Josh Robinson is 10th in minutes played/game (36:46), Belmont’s Austin Luke is 13th in assists (6.5/game), Belmont’s Evan Bradds is 18th in field goal percentage (61.6%) while Murray State’s Jonathan Stark is 21st in 3-pointers made/game (3.31).
 
CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll: In the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll (Dec. 19 - the newest poll was not yet available), Tennessee State was ranked 18th while Belmont, Eastern Illinois and UT Martin were among the others receiving votes. Gonzaga picked up all 31 first-place votes to be ranked No. 1. Now in its 18th season, the Mid-Major poll is made up of teams from the following conferences: America East, Atlantic Sun, Big Sky, Big South, Big West, Colonial, Horizon, Independents, Ivy, Metro Atlantic, Mid-American, Mid-Eastern, Missouri Valley, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot, Southern, Southland, Southwestern, Summit, Sun Belt, WAC and West Coast. It is voted upon by coaches from those conferences, with one coach per conference casting a vote (Eastern Illinois coach Jay Spoonhour is the OVC representative).
 
Recent Postseason Success: Including five total wins in 2016, OVC teams have now at least won one game in each postseason for eight-straight years, the longest stretch in league history. Morehead State won a NCAA game in 2009, Murray State won in the NCAA Tournament in 2010, Morehead State won in the NCAA’s in 2011, Murray State won in the NCAA’s in 2012, Eastern Kentucky won in the CIT in 2013, Belmont (NIT) and Murray State (CIT) won games in 2014, Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Murray State and UT Martin scored victories in 2015 (the four different teams to record a victory in the single postseason was also an OVC record) and last year (2016) Morehead State (CBI) and UT Martin (CIT) scored postseason wins.
 
Four OVC Players Nominated for 2017 AllState NABC Good Works Team: Four OVC men’s basketball players named been nominated for the 2017 AllState NABC Good Works Team. The nominees include Austin Peay’s Zach Glotta, Belmont’s Evan Bradds, SIUE’s Josh White and Tennessee Tech’s Mason Ramsey. The Allstate Good Works Team® recognizes players at all levels of college basketball whose charitable involvement and altruistic acts stand out amongst all other student-athletes participating in the sport. Athletic departments and sports information directors across the country nominated the 181 NABC student-athletes for the prestigious honor; a final roster of 10 award recipients will be unveiled in February.
 
Bradds and Mayo on Lou Henson Award Watch List: Belmont senior Evans Bradds and Eastern Kentucky sophomore Nick Mayo were two of 50 players nationally named to the preseason Lou Henson Award Watch List.  The award is presented by CollegeInsider.com to the nation’s top Division I mid-major player. The award’s namesake, Lou Henson, coached college basketball for 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. The recipient of the 2017 Lou Henson Award will be announced at the CollegeInsider.com awards banquet on April 31 in Phoenix, Arizona.
 
Bradds Named to Julius Erving Award Watch List: Belmont senior Evan Bradds has been named one of 20 candidates for the 2017 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Named after Hall of Famer and 11-time NBA All-Star Julius Erving, the annual honor in its third year recognizes the top small forwards in Division I men’s college basketball. A national committee comprised of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates. By mid-February, the watch list of 20 players for the 2017 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award will be narrowed to just 10. In March, five finalists will be presented to Mr. Erving and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. The winner of the 2017 Julius Erving Award will be presented at the ESPN College Basketball Awards in April.
 
Loos is All-Time Winningest Coach in OVC History; Byrd Ranks 8th Among Active NCAA Coaches: 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 27th year at Austin Peay. Loos now has 413 victories in his tenure at Austin Peay and 495 for his career. Belmont head coach Rick Byrd (who is in his fifth year in the OVC and 31st overall at Belmont) has 737 career victories, which ranks sixth among active Division I head coaches. Loos and Byrd are two of just six active Division I coaches to have coached at the same school for 25 or more years (the others are Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, Oakland’s Greg Kampe and Davidson’s Bob McKillop).
 
OVC Tournament Once Again at Municipal Auditorium: The 2017 OVC Tournament will once again be played at Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee (March 1-4). It marks the seventh-straight year the tournament has been at the venue and the 12th time the combined men’s and women’s tournaments have been held at the venue (1994, 1995, 1996, 2004, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016); the men’s tournament was also held there in 1967 and 1989. Beginning in 2011 the Championship switched to a format where the top eight men’s and women’s teams play in the merit-based format. The No. 1 and 2 seeds receive two byes to the semifinals while the No. 3 and 4 seeds receive one bye into the quarterfinals. The first round includes the No. 5 seed against the No. 8 seed and the No. 6 seed against the No. 7 seed. That format remains the same for the men’s team, although the women’s teams have switched back to a traditional bracket (1 vs. 8, 2 vs. 7, etc.) bracket in 2015. 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 included 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.
 
OVC to Produce 21-Game Men’s Basketball National Television Package: The OVC will produce the largest national television package in its history in 2016-17 as 21 Conference games will air on either the ESPN Family of Networks, CBS Sports Network or the American Sports Network. The Conference will once again have seven men’s games on the ESPN Family of Networks, including four regular season games as well as the OVC Tournament semifinals and championship game. The OVC will also have a seven-game package on CBS Sports Network for the third-straight season. In addition, the league will have seven men’s games on the American Sports Network (ASN). Two women’s games will be broadcast this year (1 on ESPNU, 1 on ASN) bringing the complete package to 23 games.
 
OVC Men’s Hoops in Fifth Year of Divisional Play: For the fifth year the OVC will use divisional play for men’s basketball (the OVC women’s teams are not using divisional play anymore). The addition of Belmont University on July 1, 2012 gave the OVC 12 member institutions, the largest the Conference has been since it was formed in 1948 (the OVC is currently the nation’s eighth-oldest Division I conference). The East Division includes Belmont, Eastern Kentucky, Jacksonville State, Morehead State, Tennessee State and Tennessee Tech. The West Division includes Austin Peay, Eastern Illinois, Murray State, Southeast Missouri State, SIUE and UT Martin.
 
Former OVC Players in the NBA: There are currently five former OVC players on NBA rosters. That ranks the OVC No. 10 among all 31 Division I Conferences for total numbers of NBA players (ahead of the likes of the Conference USA, Missouri Valley and Colonial). Former Morehead State All-American Kenneth Faried was the No. 22 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft and is in his sixth 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. Faried was named to the NBA All-Rookie Team in 2012 and helped lead Team USA to a Gold Medal in the World Cup of Basketball in 2014. Former Murray State All-American Isaiah Canaan was drafted by the Houston Rockets before being traded to the Philadelphia 76ers; this year he begins his first season with the Chicago Bulls. former Tennessee State star Robert Covington also started his career with Houston before signing a free agent contract with Philadelphia where he begins his third season with the 76ers. Former Belmont All-American Ian Clark saw time with the Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets before signing with the World Champion Golden State Warriors prior to last season; last year he became the first OVC player to participate in the NBA Finals since 1993-94 (TSU’s Anthony Mason). Former Murray State star and 2015 OVC Player of the Year Cameron Payne was a lottery pick (No. 14 overall) by the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2015 and begins his second year in the league this season.
 
Belmont’s Bradds Tabbed as Preseason Player of the Year: The 2016-17 OVC Preseason Men’s Basketball team was headlined by Belmont senior Evan Bradds who was named the OVC Preseason Player of the Year by the coaches and SID’s. Bradds is the second-straight Belmont player to be tabbed preseason player of the year. Overall nine different schools were represented on the team with Belmont and Tennessee State having two selections apiece and Austin Peay, Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Morehead State, Murray State, Southeast Missouri and Tennessee Tech having one pick apiece. The squad features four players who were either first or second-team selections last season. The team is comprised of seven seniors, three juniors and a sophomore. In addition to Bradds the others named to the team included Bradds’ teammate Taylor Barnette, Austin Peay’s Josh Robinson, Eastern Illinois’ Cornell Johnston, Eastern Kentucky’s Nick Mayo, Morehead State’s Xavier Moon, Murray State’s Bryce Jones, Southeast Missouri’s Antonius Cleveland, Tennessee State’s Tahjere McCall and Wayne Martin and Tennessee Tech’s Aleksa Jugovic.
 
Belmont Picked as OVC Preseason Favorite: In a vote of OVC head men’s basketball coaches and sports information directors Belmont has been picked the preseason favorite for the 2016-17 season. It marks the second-straight year the Bruins have been tabbed preseason favorites. Belmont, who has won three of the past four OVC regular season championships, picked up 16 of 24 first-place votes in being picked the preseason favorites as overall regular season champions. The Bruins were also tabbed the East Division favorites, picking up 16 of 24 first-place votes in that category, while Murray State was picked the West Division favorites. In the overall champion voting, in addition to Belmont picking up 16 first-place votes, other teams with first-place votes included Tennessee State (6), Eastern Kentucky (1) and Morehead State (1). All the teams who received an overall first-place vote came from the East Division. Since Belmont was picked as the overall champion, they were also an overwhelming favorite to take first place in its own division; the Bruins have finished first in the East in each of the first four years of divisional play. Belmont received 126 total points to top the East and were followed by Tennessee State (6 first-place votes and 106 points), Morehead State (1 first-place vote, 98 points), Tennessee Tech (62 points), Eastern Kentucky (1 first-place vote, 60 points) and Jacksonville State (40). Murray State picked up 21 of 24 first-place votes and 131 points to be picked the West Division favorites. The Racers have finished at the top of the West Division in each of the first four years of divisional play. Eastern Illinois was picked second (95 points) and followed by defending tournament champion Austin Peay (2 first-place votes, 88 points), UT Martin (1 first-place vote, 82 points), SIUE (54) and Southeast Missouri (42).
 
The 2016-17 Season: The 2016-17 season marks the 69th of competition in the OVC. Over the previous 68 years, 13 different teams have claimed an OVC regular season championship.
 
Westwood One Sports to Broadcast OVC Championship Game: For the eighth consecutive season, the OVC 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 the leading multi-platform provider of sports, music, news, spoken word, and digital audio content with a portfolio that features exclusive brands like the NFL, the GRAMMYs, NASH, Rdio, and more. Westwood One, which is part of Cumulus Media, reaches 245 million people each week through 454 owned-and-operated stations in 90 US media markets, more than 8,200 broadcast radio affiliates and numerous digital channels.
 
OVC Digital Network: The OVC launched the OVC Digital Network (OVCDN) in August 2012. The OVCDN is the exclusive home for live web streamed athletic contests involving OVC schools. This marks the 11th year the OVC has streamed live events, but the fifth year the events have been offered free of charge and in an HD format. Fans can log onto OVCDigitalNetwork.com and access the streams without any registration. The events are available on any computer, tablet or smart phone. In November 2015 the league also announced the addition of a channel on the Roku streaming player as well, making it even easier for fans to watch events on their television.