Others Nominated: Drake Reed, Austin Peay; Romain Martin, Eastern Illinois; Mike Rose, Eastern Kentucky; Isacc Miles, Murray State; Kenard Moore, Southeast Missouri; Jerrell Houston, Tennessee State; Marquis Weddle, UT Martin.
NEWCOMER
Isacc Miles, G ? So., 6-2, 205 ? Kansas City, Mo. ? Murray State
Miles earned his second Newcomer of the Week award of the season by averaging 19.0 points and 5.5 assists per game last week as Murray State compiled a 1-1 record. Miles started the week with a career-high 24 points on five made 3-point baskets in a 79-60 road victory over Southeast Missouri. He also added six assists in that win. Miles added 14 points, five assists and two steals in the Racers ESPNU BracketBusters loss to Louisiana Tech on Saturday. For the week he hit 14-of-22 (63.6%) from the field and 8-of-13 (61.5%) from 3-point range.
Others Nominated: T.J. Marion, Eastern Illinois; Jeremiah Crutcher, Tennessee State.
FRESHMAN
Ivan Aska, F ? Fr., 6-7, 230 ? Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. ? Murray State
Aska had a pair of double-figure scoring games last week as Murray State had a 1-1 record. He started the week with 12 points and five rebounds in a win at Southeast Missouri State; Aska hit 5-of-7 field goals and 2-of-3 free throw attempts in that victory. On Saturday against Louisiana Tech, Aska added 13 points and five rebounds. For the week he hit 9-of-16 (53.6%) from the field.
Others Nominated: Jeremy Granger, Eastern Illinois; Jorge Camacho, Eastern Kentucky; Parker Smith, Tennessee State.
Notes From Around the League
OVC Overview/This Week’s Highlights: The final week of the 2008-09 regular season starts on Monday night when UT Martin and Murray State square off...That is one of many key games that will go a long way in determining who wins the 2009 OVC Regular Season Championship...UT Martin enters the week with a half-game lead over Morehead State, who is one game ahead of Austin Peay, who is a half game ahead of Murray State who is only a half game ahead of Eastern Kentucky...Those five schools will fight for the top four seeds in the OVC Tournament; the top four seeds will host first round OVC Tournament games on Tuesday, March 3...Eastern Illinois and Tennessee State have also clinched spots in the eight-team field, although the eighth and final spot is up for grabs...That spot will be determined on Saturday night when Tennessee Tech (5-12 in OVC play) plays at Jacksonville State (also 5-12 in OVC play)...The winner of the JSU/TTU matchup will be the No. 8 seed while the loser will not make the tournament field...Lester Hudson remains the No. 2 scorer in the country, less than a point and a half behind Davidson’s Stephen Curry...The OVC is full of scorers this year, as Austin Peay’s Drake Reed (21.8 points/game) and Eastern Kentucky’s Mike Rose (21.0 points/game) also rank in the Top 20 nationally in scoring, with Reed ranking 14th and Rose 18th in that category...UT Martin enters the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 this week, coming in at No. 25; it marks the first OVC school ranked in the poll since Jacksonville State made an appearance in December.
ESPN Radio 1370 in Chattanooga to Air OVC Men’s Basketball Game of the Week: In January the OVC announced a partnership with ESPN Radio 1370 WDEF in Chattanooga to broadcast an OVC Men’s Basketball Game of the Week. The broadcast will be produced by Broadcaster Marketing Services and air exclusively on WDEF. Veteran play-by-play announcer Frank Santore will serve as the play-by-play announcer for the games. Each of the 10 OVC schools competing for the Conference championship this season will make one appearance on the broadcasts this season. Below is a schedule for the remainder of the season (all times central):
Feb. 28 ? Southeast Missouri at Austin Peay, 7:30 p.m.
Laser Targets OVC Consecutive Made Free Throws Record: Eastern Illinois guard Tyler Laser is nearing a nearly 30-year old record for consecutive free throws made. Laser enters this week having made 45 straight charity stripe attempts, just one off the all-time OVC record currently held by Morehead State’s Glen Napier (1981-82 season). Laser has missed only one free throw all season long (he is 47-of-48, 97.9%), which came on Dec. 4 against Tennessee State.
Hudson Only Player to Score 20 or More Points in Every Game This Season; Ranks Second Nationally in Scoring: OVC Preseason Player of the Year Lester Hudson is the only player nationally to score 20 or more points in every game this season. Hudson has reached that plateau in all 26 UTM games. His season high is 41 points at Central Arkansas and his season-low is 20 points against Tennessee, USC and Missouri State. Hudson enters this week ranked second nationally in scoring (27.4 points/game). That trails only Davidson’s Stephen Curry, who is averaging 28.6 points a contest.
Morehead State’s Faried Has Second Best Rebounding Game of the Season Nationally; Ranks Third Nationally in Rebounding: Morehead State’s Kenneth Faried grabbed a career-high 24 rebounds against Florida A&M on Nov. 23. So far this season that performance ranks as the second most rebounds by one player in a game at the Division I level. It trails only a 25-rebound performance by Chris Gadley of Canisius. Faried has also had a 20-rebound game, a 19-rebound game, an 18-rebound outing, two 17-rebound performances and two 16-rebound games in 2008-09. Faried is averaging 12.9 rebounds per game this season, which ranks fourth nationally (he is averaging 14.1 rebounds per game in 16 OVC contests this season).
Faried Ranks Among Nation’s Leaders on Double-Doubles: Morehead State sophomore center Kenneth Faried has 19 double-doubles through 29 games this season. That currently ranks as the third-most nationally as of Feb. 22. The nation’s leaders are Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin (22) and Santa Clara’s John Bryant (22). Faried is third, tied with Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody (19).
Moving up the Coaching Victory Chart: Austin Peay head coach Dave Loos now has 310 career victories while in the OVC, a mark that ranks second in league history. He is just nine (9) wins shy of Cal Luther (319 wins at Murray State and UT Martin) for the all-time mark. He is by far the active leader in the category as well, as only two other current OVC coaches - UT Martin’s Bret Campbell and Tennessee Tech’s Mike Sutton have reached the 100-win plateau at their respective OVC schools.
OVC Tournament All-Session Tickets Now on Sale: All-Session tickets for the 2009 Ohio Valley Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament are now on sale through the Sommet Center ticket office and Ticketmaster. The semifinals and finals will be held March 6-7 at the Sommet Center in downtown Nashville. The event includes four sessions (6 games); the price for an All-Session ticket is $48. The women’s semifinals will begin at 12 p.m. on Friday, March 6 with the men’s semifinals following at 6 p.m. that evening. The women’s championship game will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 7 with the men’s championship game beginning at 7 p.m. that evening. Fans can purchase tickets by calling the Sommet Center ticket office (615-770-2040) or Ticketmaster (615-255-9600 or Ticketmaster.com).
UT Martin’s Hudson One of 10 Finalists for Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award: Lester Hudson has been named among the high-achieving group of 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, which has become the premier honor for senior student-athletes in the nation. Hudson is the first UT Martin men's basketball player to advance to the final round of balloting for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. This announcement launches a nationwide balloting process to determine the 2009 award winner. Lowe's, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA will announce and present the men's basketball winner with the distinctive Lowe's Senior CLASS Award trophy in front of a national television audience during the CBS telecast of the NCAA Men's Final Four in Detroit. The 10 finalists will be placed on the official ballot for a nationwide vote beginning today and concluding March 22. Votes from coaches and media will be coupled with fan balloting to determine the recipient of the award. Fans can vote online during this time period at http://www.seniorclassaward.com. For the first time in the basketball division, text voting will also be available during the voting period. To vote for Hudson via text, fans can send the text code MB5 to the number 839863. Joining Hudson among the 10 finalists are A.J. Abrams (University of Texas, Austin), Jimmy Baron (University of Rhode Island), Dionte Christmas (Temple University), Tyler Hansbrough (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), Curtis Jerrells (Baylor University), Jerel McNeal (Marquette University), Andy Wicke (Belmont University), Terrence Williams (University of Louisville) and Sam Young (University of Pittsburgh). Finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award were selected from a list of 30 candidates, based on personal qualities that define a complete student-athlete. Each finalist displays numerous accomplishments across four award pillars: classroom, community, character, and competition.
TTU’s Davis Named to ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Squad: Tennessee Tech junior guard Frank Davis has been named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District IV First-Team as selected by CoSIDA. Davis was the only men’s basketball player in the OVC selected to one of the eight All-District squads. Davis carries a 3.42 grade point average in exercise science. For making the first-team Davis will now advance to the national ballot for consideration of Academic All-American. To be eligible for nomination, a student-athlete must have reached sophomore academic standing and have at least a 3.30 cumulative grade point average. District IV selections come from schools located within the states of Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee.
Alexander Dismissed as TSU Coach; Pittman Named Interim Coach: Tennessee State University director of athletics, Teresa Phillips announced the dismissal of head basketball coach Cy Alexander on Feb. 6. Alexander was in his sixth season at Tennessee State posting a record of 67-107 and 48-56 in the Ohio Valley Conference. Overall, in 24 years, Alexander has posted a record of 344-306. Last season, TSU finished 15-17, 10-10 in the OVC, after reaching the championship game of the Ohio Valley Conference. Mark Pittman will serve as interim head coach. Pittman joined the Tennessee State basketball program in 2003, reuniting him with Alexander. Pittman served previously as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator under Alexander at South Carolina State from 1989-92. A 1977 graduate of Illinois, Pittman is a veteran of both the collegiate and high school coaching ranks. Along with his tenure at South Carolina State, he was an assistant and recruiting coordinator at Cincinnati from 1983-89. He was an administrative assistant at Jacksonville University (1998-2001) and worked as an assistant coach at Florida Community College (1996-98). He also served as both a graduate assistant and student assistant basketball coach at Illinois.
TSU’s Robinson a Candidate for Bob Cousy Award: Tennessee State sophomore guard Gerald Robinson, Jr. has been named a candidate for the Bob Cousy Award, presented by The Hartford; the award is given to the top collegiate point guard annually spanning all divisions. The selection criteria emphasize leadership, team work, success and fundamentals as being critical parts for the games of basketball as a point guard. Nominations are solicited from head coaches across the country and the winner is selected by a Blue Ribbon Selection Committee. Other nominees include UNC’s Ty Lawson, Davidson’s Stephen Curry and UCLA’s Darren Collison.
Loos Named to Division I Men’s Basketball Issues Committee: Dave Loos, Austin Peay State University’s athletics director and head men’s basketball coach, has been appointed to the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Issues Committee. Loos will fill the unexpired term of Delaware State’s Rick Costello. His appointment begins immediately and runs through Sept. 1, 2012. Loos currently is in his 19th season as Austin Peay head coach and is the only Division I basketball coach serving as the university’s athletics director?Loos is in his 12th as APSU’s athletics director. The NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Issues Committee is charged with oversight of all issues pertaining to NCAA Division I men's basketball. The committee works closely with the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) on legislation and other issues, as well as the National Basketball Association and USA Basketball. The committee's primary duties are to ensure the appropriate oversight of the sport, with an emphasis on recruiting activities and to enhance the development and public perception of the sport. The committee also makes policy recommendations per topics unrelated to legislative and playing rules issues.
Hudson Named to Early Season Naismith Watch List: UT Martin senior guard Lester Hudson was one of 50 players on the Naismith Trophy Early Season Watch List as announced by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. The watch list was compiled by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, which based its criteria on player performances from the previous year and expectations for the 2008-09 college basketball season. The watch list does not include incoming freshmen, although those student-athletes will be considered in the first vote in February, 2009. The Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T will be awarded at the 2009 NCAA Men’s Final Four in Detroit, Mich. In February, the Naismith Trophy voting academy, comprised of leading basketball journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country, will narrow its early season list to the Top 30 players in the nation. Those players, and others who distinguish themselves throughout the season, will be eligible for the final ballot in March.
Former TTU Point Guard Named Head Coach of NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers: Tony DiLeo, the starting point guard for the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles during two years in the mid 70s, has been named head coach of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers. DiLeo played at Tech as a freshman in the 1973-74 season, and as a sophomore in 1974-75, both under head coach Connie Inman. He transferred to LaSalle in his hometown of Philadelphia for his final two seasons. Playing in 50 games for the Golden Eagles, DiLeo dished out 272 assists, which ranked as the second-most in school history, only eight behind Wayne Pack¹s school record. More than 30 years later, DiLeo’s total still ranks 14th in the career record book. DiLeo, currently the team’s Senior Vice President and Assistant General Manager, will remain in the position through the end of the 2008-09 season. DiLeo is in his 19th season with the Sixers organization and his fifth as the team’s Senior Vice President and Assistant General Manager.
Hudson Named to John R. Wooden Award Watch List: Lester Hudson, a senior guard at The University of Tennessee at Martin, is one of 50 preseason candidates for the 2008-09 John R. Wooden Award All-American Team and Player of the Year trophy. The list of candidates for the Wooden Award is composed of 50 student-athletes who, based on last year’s individual performance and team records, are the early frontrunners for college basketball’s most prestigious honor. Among the other candidates for the Wood Award are Tyler Hansbrough of North Carolina, last year’s Wooden Award winner; Notre Dame forward Luke Harangody; and Davidson guard Stephen Curry. In all, 42 schools and 13 conferences are represented on the Wooden Award Pre-Season list. Leading the way is the Big East with 12 candidates. Hudson is the only candidate for the award from the Ohio Valley Conference. In mid-January, the Wooden Award Committee will release the Midseason Top 30 list, followed in March by the national ballot, consisting of approximately 20 top players who have proven to their universities that they are also making progress toward graduation and maintaining a cumulative 2.0 GPA. The Wooden Award All-American Team will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round during the NCAA Tournament. Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball. It is bestowed upon the nation’s best player at an institution of higher education who has proven to his university that he is making progress toward graduation and maintaining a cumulative 2.0 GPA. Previous winners include such notables as Larry Bird (1979), Michael Jordan (1984), Tim Duncan (1997) and 2007 recipient Kevin Durant of Texas.
Hudson and Robinson Earn Preseason Recognition From CollegeInsider.com: UT Martin senior guard Lester Hudson and Tennessee State sophomore guard Gerald Robinson earned preseason All-American honors from CollegeInsider.com. Hudson was named to the 16-player All-American team while Robinson was one of 25 players named to the Mid-Major All-American squad. Both Division I coaches and NBA scouts were part of the selection process along with the CollegeInsider.com staff. Hudson was one of just 16 selections to the All-America team, which included the likes of North Carolina’s Tyler Hansbrough, Davidson’s Stephen Curry and Kentucky’s Patrick Patterson. Robinson was one of 25 selections to the Mid-Major All-American Team.
Hudson Named to CollegeHoops.net Preseason Mid-Major All-America Team: UT Martin senior guard Lester Hudson was named to CollegeHoops.net First-Team Mid-Major All-America squad. Hudson joins Davidson’s Stephen Curry; Saint Mary’s Patrick Mills; Butler’s Matt Howard and Saint Mary’s Diamon Simpson on the first-team.
OVC Teams Go 3-7 in ESPNU BracketBusters Games: OVC schools compiled a 3-7 overall record in this year’s 2009 ESPNU BracketBusters series. Eastern Illinois (at Western Michigan), Eastern Kentucky (vs. Ohio) and Tennessee State (vs. Detroit) were the three schools who picked up victories. This year mocked the fourth straight year that every Ohio Valley Conference school participated in the event. Five schools hosted games while the other five went on the road. Austin Peay has competed in the most BracketBusters games, competing in each of the last five years. UT Martin had been the only OVC school to go undefeated in BracketBusters games, winning their first three games in the series before falling to Missouri State this season. The team’s 3-1 BracketBusters record is the best among OVC schools. Now it its seventh year, ESPNU BracketBusters is an ESPN television property that was tremendously successful with its first six events in February of 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. 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 ESPNU BracketBusters teams pre-designated as "home" and the remaining half as "road" teams.
The 2008-09 Season: The 2008-09 season marks the 61st of competition for the Ohio Valley Conference. Over the previous 60 years, 11 different teams have claimed an OVC regular season championship, including three different schools in the past four years.
UT Martin’s Hudson Tabbed as Preseason Player of the Year: The 2008-09 All-OVC Preseason Men’s Basketball team was headlined by UT Martin senior guard Lester Hudson, the 2007-08 OVC Player of the Year. Hudson was tabbed a nearly unanimous Preseason Player of the Year after earning the award at the end of last season. Overall seven different schools were represented on the team with Morehead State, Tennessee State and UT Martin each placing two individuals on the team. The team included six seniors, a junior and three sophomores while featuring three repeat selections from last year’s All-OVC squads. Hudson finished last year ranked in the Top 10 nationally in each points per game (25.7 - 4th), steals (2.8 - 4th) and 3-pointers made per game (3.8 - 10th). He also became the first Division I men’s basketball player to record a quadruple-double in a game. Hudson was joined by two other players who were selections on the 2007-08 All-OVC team - Austin Peay forward Drake Reed (the 2006-07 OVC Player of the Year and last year’s preseason Player of the Year) and Eastern Kentucky guard Mike Rose. Reed averaged 14.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game last season while leading APSU to the OVC regular season and tournament championships. Rose led EKU with 15.3 points per game while also adding 4.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.8 steals per game. All five individuals who were named to the OVC All-Newcomer Team last season made this year’s preseason team. That includes Hudson, his UT Martin teammate Marquis Weddle (17.1 ppg, 99 made 3-pointers), Morehead State’s Leon Buchanan (13.2 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 53.5 FG%) and Kenneth Faried (10.5 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 51.6 FG%) and Tennessee State’s Gerald Robinson (15.2 ppg, 60 made 3-pointers). Rounding out the Preseason All-OVC team was Tennessee State’s Jerrell Houston (11.6 ppg, 6.1 rpg), Tennessee Tech’s Daniel Northern (12.8 ppg, OVC-best 9.3 rebounds per game and OVC-best 2.8 blocks per game) and Murray State’s Danero Thomas (12.3 ppg, 4.9 rpg).
Murray State Picked as Preseason Favorite: In a vote of Ohio Valley Conference head men’s basketball coaches and sports information directors, Murray State was picked as the 2008-09 preseason favorite in the 10-team league. The Racers, who received 11 of 20 first-place votes, finished second in the OVC last season (13-7) and return nine players and four starters from the team. It marks the 12th time in the last 20 years that Murray State has been picked the preseason favorite and the first time since the 2005-06 season. Murray State totaled 149 points and was closely followed by UT Martin who received six first-place votes (142 points). It marks the highest preseason ranking the Skyhawks have received since joining the OVC in 1992. Previously UTM had been picked no higher than sixth in the preseason predictions (four different times). Defending champion Austin Peay received two first-place votes and was tabbed third (129 points) while Morehead State received one first-place vote and was picked fourth (118), its highest preseason selection since 2003-04. Tennessee State was picked fifth (108), followed by Tennessee Tech (77), Eastern Kentucky (59), Southeast Missouri State (57), Eastern Illinois (35) and Jacksonville State (26).
Preseason Predictions: Is being picked the preseason favorite, always a good thing? Over the past 29 years of preseason polls that were available, the league’s head coaches and sports information directors correctly pick the eventual OVC regular season champion 62 percent of the time, picking the correct winner 18 times over the last 29 years. Over the past nine years, the preseason poll has correctly picked the winner every other year. Last season the poll correctly picked Austin Peay to claim the championship.
A New Face: Jacksonville State’s James Green is the lone new coach in the OVC last year, as he takes over the Gamecock program after previously coaching at Mississippi Valley State.
SIU Edwardsville Joins the OVC: On July 1 Southern Illinois University Edwardsville became the 11th member of the Ohio Valley Conference. SIU Edwardsville, who is in the reclassification process to Division I, will begin regular season competition in the OVC during the 2011-12 academic year and will be eligible for postseason competition in 2012-13. The exception is the SIUE softball program, which will be eligible for both regular season and tournament competition in 2010-11; the softball program was the department’s women’s sport designee to be fast-tracked to Division I, making it eligible to compete at Division I prior to other SIUE sports. SIUE is located in Edwardsville, Ill., which is just northeast of St. Louis (the 18th largest media market in the United States.
Replay Systems for OVC Basketball Venues Enter Year Two: 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 and used through the remainder of the 2007-08 season. They are in effect once again in 2008-09. The systems are used in situations that are outlined by NCAA rules.
OVC Players in the Pros: As of January 2009, there was two former Ohio Valley Conference players on an NBA roster - Austin Peay’s Trenton Hassell and Murray State’s James Singleton. Hassell is in his eighth season in the NBA and second with the New Jersey Nets. He also played with the Chicago Bulls (who drafted him 30th overall in the 2001 Draft and where he played two seasons), Minnesota Timberwolves (four seasons) and Dallas Mavericks (37 games in 2007-08). During his 539-game career he has averaged 6.2 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game while hitting 44.7 percent of his field goal attempts. Singleton is playing in his first season with the Dallas Mavericks after playing two years with the Los Angeles Clippers. He has seen action in 112 games prior to the 2008-09 season. After finishing his two-year career at Murray State in 2002-03, Singleton played in Italy before making it to the NBA.
A Look Back to 2007-08: For the second consecutive year the Austin Peay Governors claimed the OVC Regular Season Championship but this time around the team completed the sweep and also claimed the tournament crown. After losing in the Tournament Championship Game on a last-second shot in 2007, Austin Peay finished the job and topped Tennessee State 74-54 to claim their fifth OVC Tournament Championship. APSU would go on to play No. 2 seed Texas in the NCAA Tournament, falling to the Longhorns in the game played in Little Rock, Ark. Over the past two seasons the Govs have compiled a 32-8 OVC record. UT Martin guard Lester Hudson was named an All-American by several outlets after having an outstanding year. Hudson became the first Division I men’s player to record a quadruple-double in a game when he had 25 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals in a win over Central Baptist College. He also broke the OVC single-season record for 3-pointers made (124) in a season and finished in the Top 100 nationally in each points, rebounds, assists, steals and 3-pointers made/game - the only Division I player to accomplish that feat. He declared for the NBA Draft but decided to return to school following pre-draft workouts. Hudson’s teammate Marquis Weddle was named to OVC Freshman of the Year while Morehead State’s Donnie Tyndall took home Coach of the Year honors.
OVCSports.TV: For the third consecutive year, fans can watch nearly ever Conference matchup and all non-conference home contests this season at OVCSports.TV. The venture with 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 nearly 1,000 events in its first two years, including all Conference matchups in football and men’s and women’s basketball as well as select baseball, soccer, softball and volleyball games and OVC Championship events. Packages are available on a yearly, seasonal, monthly or per-event basis.
Team Notes
Austin Peay: Austin Peay enters the final week of the season 1.5 games behind UT Martin for first place in the Conference standings...The Governors will host Eastern Illinois and Southeast Missouri in games this week as the team seeks its ninth OVC regular season title and third in a row...The Govs won their only OVC matchup last week, topping Jacksonville State 72-60 in the team’s final road game of the regular season...That gave Austin Peay 11 OVC wins on the season, marking the fourth straight season the team has won 11 or more Conference games...Senior Drake Reed, who enters this week ranked 14th nationally in scoring, scored 30 points and pulled down 14 rebounds in the game, which is his sixth double-double of the season and the 16th of his career...It was Reed’s sixth 30-point game of the season, the most by an APSU player since now assistant coach Bubba Wells had 11 in the 1996-97 season...In six games during the month of February, Reed is averaging 28.8 points and 8.8 rebounds/game while hitting 58.1 percent from the field...Austin Peay wrapped up the week with an ESPNU BracketBusters game at Drake, as the team lost 71-54...Despite the loss APSU committed a season-low six turnovers...Austin Peay has started three freshmen - Tyrone Caldwell, Anthony Campbell and Marcel Williams - in each of the last two games.
Eastern Illinois: Eastern Illinois enters the final week of the season with an 8-8 record and has clinched a spot in the OVC Tournament, marking the first time since the 2005 season that the team will appear in the event...The Panthers currently hold down the No. 6 spot in the field...EIU began last week with its fourth straight loss in OVC play, losing a 76-60 game to UT Martin...Romain Martin scored 27 points in that game, hitting 4-of-9 from 3-point range; for the week Martin averaged 19.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest...But the team rebounded on Saturday, going on the road to defeat Western Michigan 59-57 in ESPNU BracketBusters competition...The key play in the contest came with 1:06 left in regulation when freshman Jeremy Granger drove to the basket and completed an old-fashioned three-point play to give the team a 58-55 lead...The game was close throughout, as the lead changed hands seven times and there were eight ties in the second half...Ousmane Cisse led the way with 13 points, hitting 4-of-5 shots and 5-of-6 free throw attempts...Guard Tyler Laser enters this week having made 45 consecutive free throws, which is just one behind the all-time OVC record of 46 (set in the 1981-82 season)...Eastern Illinois will go on the road to finish out the regular season, playing at defending champion Austin Peay on Thursday and at Tennessee State on Saturday.
Eastern Kentucky: Eastern Kentucky continues to surge at the right time, winning its fourth straight game last week and the seventh game in its last eight contests overall...The Colonels enter this week with a 10-6 Conference mark, which puts them in fifth place; however, the team is just one game out of third place with two games to play...EKU began last week with a 74-70 victory over rival Morehead State, knocking the Eagles out of first place in the OVC standings...That gave the Colonels a season split with the Eagles...In that game Mike Rose scored 30 points on 10-of-16 shooting (4-of-6 from 3-point range)...Rose finished the week averaging 22.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game...Rose ranks 18th nationally in scoring (21.0 points/game), 12th nationally in 3-pointers made per game (3.4) and second nationally in 3-point percentage (49.2%)...Eastern Kentucky finished the week by topping Ohio in ESPNU BracketBusters action in Richmond...Freshman Jorge Camacho came off the bench to score 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting; he also added an assist and two steals...Rose scored 14 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to record his third double-double of the season...Eastern Kentucky will get a chance to move up in the standings by playing two teams ahead of it in the standings; the Colonels play at league-leading UT Martin on Thursday and at preseason favorite (and current No. 4 team) Murray State on Saturday.
Jacksonville State:Jacksonville State saw its losing streak reach five games as they lost to Austin Peay in OVC play and dropped an ESPNU BracketBusters contest at Georgia Southern...The Gamecocks were led in scoring by Jonathan Toles and Jeremy Bynum who each scored 13 points; DeAndre Bray added 10 points in the loss...Saturday it was Georgia Southern who topped the Gamecocks, as JSU was limited to just 34.8 percent from the field...Bynum put together the best performance of the night, scoring 28 points on 5-of-10 shooting from 3-point range...Despite suffering through a losing streak, the Gamecocks control their own destiny entering the final week of the regular season...Jax State is tied with Tennessee Tech for eighth place in the OVC standings with identical 5-12 records...The two teams will play on Saturday afternoon in Jacksonville with the winner claiming the No. 8 seed and the losing team not making the tournament field.
Morehead State: Morehead State suffered an OVC loss at Eastern Kentucky on Wednesday, dropping to 12-4 in OVC play which knocked them one half a game behind UT Martin atop the league standings...The Eagles will have to go on the road for two games this week as the program is in search of its first regular season championship since sharing the title with Austin Peay in 2002-03...The Eagles will play at Murray State on Thursday night in a game that can be seen on ESPNU; Morehead State topped Murray State earlier in the season and the game could be important in the tiebreaker process...Saturday the Eagles will play at the team they are chasing in the standings; the Eagles topped UT Martin in Morehead earlier this season...MSU senior Leon Buchanan was named OVC Player of the Week after averaging 28.0 points and 9.0 rebounds/game and hitting 66.7 percent (18-of-27) from the field and 90.9 percent (20-of-22) from the free throw line...Buchanan scored 25 points and had 10 rebounds in the loss at EKU and added 31 points and eight rebounds in an ESPNU BracketBusters defeat at Kent State...Sophomore Kenneth Faried added two more double-doubles last week and now has 19 in 29 games this season; Faried, who ranks fourth nationally in rebounding (12.9/game), now ranks third nationally in double-doubles (3 behind the nation’s leader)...For the week Faried averaged 19.5 points and 13.5 rebounds while hitting 60.7 percent from the field.
Murray State: Murray State won its fourth OVC game in a row to begin last week by topping Southeast Missouri State 79-60...That improved the team’s record to 10-5 in OVC play with three games left to play this week...The Racers are in fourth place in the standings, but just two games out of first place...Two of the team’s three games this week are against teams higher than them in the standings meaning the team has a decent shot of winning the OVC regular season title, which is where they were predicted to finish in the preseason...Sophomore guard Isacc Miles was named OVC Newcomer of the Week after averaging 19.0 points and 5.5 assists per game...Miles had a career-high 24 points (hitting 5 3-pointers) in the team’s win over Southeast Missouri and added 14 in an ESPNU BracketBusters loss to Louisiana Tech...The loss to LaTech was only the second of the season (in 10 games) at the Regional Special Events Center...Freshman Ivan Aska was named OVC Freshman of the Week after averaging 12.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while hitting 53.6 percent (9-of-16) from the field...Senior guard Tyler Holloway moved into third place on the MSU career 3-pointers made list last week, moving his career total to 202; he needs just two more to tie Don Mann for second all-time...Tony Easley netted his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds last week...The Racers will play UT Martin on Monday (in a make-up game from one the ice storm cancelled earlier this month) and then welcome Morehead State (Thursday on ESPNU) and Eastern Kentucky to the RSEC.
Southeast Missouri: Southeast Missouri State dropped games to Murray State and Northern Illinois (ESPNU BracketBusters) last week...The Redhawks have now lost 17 games in a row (the longest streak nationally) and 22 of its last 23 overall...The team has also been officially eliminated from contention to make the eight-team OVC Tournament field...The team has two more regular season games left, traveling to Tennessee State and Austin Peay for games this week...The Redhawks are searching for their first OVC win of the season and trying to avoid becoming only the seventh OVC team to go through a season without a Conference victory; the last team to go winless during a OVC season was Tennessee State in 2002-03 (0-16)...Senior guard Kenard Moore keeps playing well, as he averaged 30.5 points per game last week, hitting 21-of-40 (52.5%) from the field and 10-of-20 (50%) from 3-point range...Moore scored 25 points in the game against Murray State, hitting 5-of-8 from 3-point range in 36 minutes of action...In Saturday’s loss to NIU, Moore added 36 points, hitting 5-of-12 from 3-point range...Jaycen Herring added 22 points, three rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals in the loss.
SIU Edwardsville: After not playing for 12 days, SIU Edwardsville went on the road to play a pair of games against fellow reclassifying programs South Dakota and North Dakota last week...In the first game of the week with North Dakota, SIUE saw the Fighting Sioux hit 26-of-36 free throw attempts in the second half and come-from-behind to top the Cougars 76-68...For the game UND hit 32-of-45 from the line while SIUE was only 16-of-23...Mark Yelovich led SIU Edwardsville with 19 points and seven rebounds...The week ended in Vermillion, S.D. in a game against South Dakota, a squad the Cougars had topped by five points at home on Feb. 7...This time USD hit 26-of-32 from the free throw line and drained 11 3-pointers to pull out an 107-73 victory...Aamir McCleary had a game-high 19 points on 6-of-13 shooting...SIUE will return home to battle Oakland City on Tuesday, in a game that was re-scheduled from earlier this month after an ice storm moved through the area...On Sunday the team will host a return game when North Dakota comes to town.
Tennessee State: Under interim coach Mark Pittman Tennessee State is now 4-1, having won two more games last week...After taking over coaching duties on Feb. 6, Pittman lost his first game (against UT Martin) but has reeled off four wins in a row since that point...The wins have pushed Tennessee State to 7-9 in Conference play and the team has clinched a spot in the OVC Tournament field as either the No. 6 or No. 7 seed...TSU opened the week with a 77-74 win over Tennessee Tech in a game seen live on ESPNU...Darius Cox had his second straight double-double, as he scored 15 points and had 11 rebounds in 34 minutes of action...Sophomore Gerald Robinson added 19 points and four assists...On Saturday, the Tigers were one of just three OVC schools to win in the ESPNU BracketBusters series, topping Detroit 78-75 at the Gentry Center...Jerrell Houston had a team-high 17 points while Jeremiah Crutcher added 16 points and eight rebounds without committing a turnover in 33 minutes of action...For the week Crutcher averaged 11.0 points and 6.0 assists while hitting 63.6 percent (7-of-11) of his shots...He hit 5-of-7 3-pointers against Detroit, including the go-ahead shot with 2:50 to play...Crutcher also hit a free throw with 44 seconds left to ice the game...Tennessee State will have home games with Eastern Illinois and Southeast Missouri State this week...The game with Eastern Illinois will prove very important for the final standings, as EIU enters the week with a one game lead in the standings; EIU topped the Tigers earlier this season in Charleston.
Tennessee Tech: Tennessee Tech saw its losing streak hit seven games last week, dropping an OVC contest with Tennessee State and an ESPNU BracketBusters game at Ball State...The Golden Eagles, however, are tied for eighth place in the OVC standings with one game to play...Tech is tied for that final spot in the OVC Tournament field with Jacksonville State...The two teams will play Saturday afternoon in Jacksonville; the winner will be the No. 8 seed in the event while the loser will see their season come to an end...Against TSU, Kevin Murphy led the Golden Eagles with 19 points, hitting 3-of-5 from 3-point range in 27 minutes of action...Frank Davis hit 5-of-9 3-pointers on the night and scored 17 points; Davis also added three steals...In Saturday’s loss at Ball State, Daniel Northern tallied his 10th double-double of the season (11 points, 13 rebounds) to lead the Golden Eagles.
UT Martin: UT Martin opened last week with a 76-60 road victory over Eastern Illinois to improve to 12-3 in OVC play; coupled with a Morehead State loss the same nigh the Skyhawks moved into first place in the OVC standings, a half a game ahead of the Eagles with three games to play...The Skyhawks have never finished higher than fourth place in the OVC standings since joining the Conference in the 1992-93 season...The team will have three tough games to play this week, playing at Murray State on Monday (a place they have never won), and hosting Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State to close out the week...All three of those teams are in the Top 5 in the OVC standings and have a shot at winning the OVC regular season title...UTM is searching for its 20th victory of the season this week, which would mark the first time in the Division I era the team has reached that plateau...UT Martin has won 20 or more games four times in its history (last coming in 1987-88) although all of those happened at the Division II level...Senior Lester Hudson remains the No. 2 scorer in the nation, although for the first time this season he did not lead the team in scoring, failing to do so in both games last week...In turn, sophomore Marquis Weddle averaged 25.5 points per game, hitting 18-of-37 (48%) from the field and 9-of-21 (42.8%) from 3-point range...Weddle scored a season-high 26 points in the team’s ESPNU BracketBusters loss to Missouri State on Saturday...That loss ended the team’s 11-game winning streak, which was amongst the nation’s leaders...UTM still has won 11 of its last 12 and 17 of its last 19 games overall...The Skyhawks also entered the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll on Monday, coming in at No. 25.