The Murray State Racers host the Eastern Illinois Panthers in an Ohio Valley Conference showdown tonight at 8 p.m. ET at the CFSB Center. These conference foes last met on Jan. 17 where the Racers came out on top 83-61.
Murray State is 17-4 overall with an 8-2 conference record and is in a four-way tie for first place in the OVC with Belmont, Austin Peay, and Jacksonville State. The Racers are coming off a 67-63 win over Tennessee Tech in their last contest on Feb. 2.
Sophomore guard Ja Morant is having a remarkable season and has drastically improved since his freshman year. As a freshman, Morant was averaging 12.7 PPG and 6.3 APG. In his second season, he is averaging 24.1 PPG, which is first in the OVC, on 51.2% shooting and 10.4 APG which also leads the conference. He also is tied for second in steals averaging two steals per game.
The college phenom is a projected top three pick in this year’s NBA draft; his scoring and passing gifts, his speed, and his tremendous dunking ability have a bunch of NBA general managers drooling from their mouths.
Eastern Illinois is 13-10, 6-4 in the conference and is tied for fifth in the OVC with Tennessee Tech. They are coming off an 84-78 loss to Morehead State on Feb. 2.
Sophomore guard Kashawn Charles leads the conference in three-point percentage, shooting an incredible 48.9%. Sophomore guard Josiah Wallace is ranked eighth in the OVC in scoring, averaging 15.4 PPG on 41.5% shooting.
The Panthers will have their work cut out for them tonight. They are not a very good road team; they are 4-6 on the road this season.
One strength the Panthers have is their three-point shooting; as a team, they shoot 37.1% from behind the arc which is second in the conference. They hope that they can overcome Murray State’s outstanding three-point defense, the Racers hold their opponents to shooting just 27.5% from behind the arc.
ESPN+ will feature tonight’s Ohio Valley Conference clash between the Murray State Racers and the Eastern Illinois Panthers. Will the Racers be able to improve to 11-1 at home or will the Panthers get back in the win column? Tune in to find out!
Scroll down for a free trial on us and how to catch all the action:
Murray State vs. Eastern Illinois 2/7/19 free live stream, ESPN+ viewing information
Date: Thursday, Feb. 7
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Live Stream: ESPN+ free trial
