The UTM Skyhawks men’s basketball team was defeated at home by the Ohio Valley Conference West Division-leading Murray State Racers on Thursday evening by a score of 86-72.
The Skyhawks have now lost seven of the last eight games, as well as their fourth consecutive home game. Since the 2008-2009 season, the Skyhawks have not won more than six OVC games in a single year. Murray State has now won five straight games and three of their last four on the road.
Junior forward Myles Taylor led the way in scoring once again for UTM with 16 points, marking the twelfth game this season in which Taylor led or shared the team lead in points scored. Taylor also added seven rebounds and four assists. Dee Oldham, the team’s sophomore guard, was close behind in scoring with 15 points on the game, including a three-pointer early in the second half that gave the Skyhawks their first and only lead of the game, which lasted roughly twelve seconds.
For the Racers, junior guard T.J. Sapp came off the bench to lead the team with 20 points. Freshman guard Cameron Payne and junior forward Jarvis Williams also contributed in significant fashion, tallying 17 and 14 points respectively. Williams also recorded nine rebounds.
Much of the Skyhawks’ inability to pull ahead can be attributed to their inaccuracy from three-point range in the second half. Despite completing 55.6% of their shots from three in the first half, the team made just 18.2% from range after the break. In comparison, the Racers improved from 33.3% to 41.7% from three-point range after halftime.
The Skyhawks and Racers have now played 48 contests since the two teams first met during the 1956-1957 season. Of these, Murray State has won all but four meetings between the teams.
The Skyhawks, who now sit at 8-22 overall (3-12 in OVC play), will play their final game of the 2013-2014 season on Saturday, March 1. They will host the Austin Peay Governors, who defeated the Skyhawks earlier this season. Murray State improves to 18-9 overall (13-2 OVC) with the victory; they will play their final game at Southeast Missouri on Saturday.
