It’s a quarterfinal matchup in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, also known as Arch Madness, coming to you on the hardwood from the Gateway City. The seventh-seeded Murray State Racers look to knock off the second-seeded Drake Bulldogs Friday night with the winner advancing to Saturday’s semifinals. Murray State advanced to the quarterfinals as they rolled 10th-seeded Valparaiso 78-50 in their first-round matchup Thursday night, covering the line as a 0.5-point favorite. Drake was upended 73-61 on the road by Bradley Sunday night in their regular season finale, failing to cover the line as a 3.5-point underdog, in their previous contest. In the all-time series between the teams, the Bulldogs own a 3-1 advantage and have won the last three meetings, including both this season. The most recent matchup saw Drake pick up a 92-68 road victory back on February 7.
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Murray State rolled past Valparaiso in their first-round matchup as they dimmed the Beacons for the third time this season. The Racers improved to 17-14 on the season with the win but now try to take down Drake after losing both regular season meetings. Against Valparaiso, Murray State gave up the opening bucket but scored the next six points and never trailed again. The Racers led by 13 at the half and didn’t let the Beacons get closer than nine in the second half. Murray State shot 42.6% from the floor, including 10 of 27 from three-point range, and limited Valparaiso to 32.7% shooting in the contest. Jamari Smith led the Racers with 19 points in the victory.
The Racers are an average offensive unit as they come into this contest averaging 70.5 points per game this season, putting them 209th in the nation in scoring offense. Murray State pulls down 34.7 rebounds per contest while handing out an average of 11.8 assists a night. The Racers are slightly below average defensively, ranking 259th in scoring defense by allowing an average of 72.7 points a night. Rob Perry leads the team and is one of three players averaging in double figures with 14.1 points plus 4.5 rebounds per game this season. Jamari Smith (11.5 points, 4.3 rebounds) and JaCobi Wood (10.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists) are good secondary scoring options. DJ Burns, Kenny White Jr., Quincy Anderson, Brian Moore and Justin Morgan are key role players for coach Steve Prohm. Murray State shoots 44.2% from the field as a team on the year. The Racers splash 6.1 three-pointers a night while shooting 33.5% from beyond the arc. Murray State is slightly above average at the charity stripe, converting 73.9% of their attempts this season.
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