Austin Peay Governors Basketball take on rival Murray State Racers in Murray Saturday at noon

By Hank Bonecutter | February 1, 2013 |

Murray, KY – A week off has been beneficial to both Austin Peay and Murray State as the Ohio Valley Conference season hit the mid-way point.

For Murray State it has given a banged up group of Racers a chance to rest and recover from a season-long list of nagging injuries.

APSU’s Travis Betran had 27 points in a losing effort against Murray State in their meeting Saturday, January 12th. Austin Peay men’s Basketball.

Now it is Game On when the Governors and Racers meet in the CFSB Center, noon, Saturday, in the Ohio Valley Conference’s best rivalry. The contest will be televised by ESPNU.

Murray State comes in at 15-5 and first place in the OVC West Division at 6-2. The Racers, however, suffered a road loss at Jacksonville State in its most recent games.

This will be the last time the Govs not only will face All-America guard Isaiah Canaan in Murray but forward Ed Daniel as well. The two have proven to be nemesis of the Govs throughout their respective careers.

APSU, meanwhile, must erase what has occurred in the OVC season’s first half and attempt to begin anew.

Fastbreak

• This is Dave Loos’ 23rd season as Austin Peay head coach and he is 368-327 at APSU-the winningest basketball coach in Ohio Valley Conference history-while 450-380 all-time in his 27th season as a college head coach
• Austin Peay was picked to finish third behind Murray State and Southeast Missouri in the newly-formed OVC West Division in the preseason poll.
• APSU is amidst its third game of a three-game road trip. The Govs are 0-2 on the trip and are 0-9 this season on the road.
• APSU enters the game having lost five straight and 13 out of their last 14 games following the loss at Tennessee Tech.
• Murray State comes in at 15-5 overall and 6-2 in the OVC. After holding Tennessee Tech to 39 points in a victory, the Racers lost at Jacksonville State, 65-64. That ended the Racers’ OVC road winning streak at 12.
• All-America guard Isaiah Canaan leads Murray State, averaging 21.1 ppg and has made 60 three pointers-he had made at least one three pointer in 29 straight contests-while also leading the Racers in assists (4.1 apg).
• Forward Ed Daniel continues to be force inside, averaging 14.3 ppg and 11.0 rpg. He has had three straight double-doubles, including 17 rebounds vs. Jacksonville State. He and Canaan have started 55 straight games together.
• Senior guard Stacy Wilson is the Racers’ third double-figure scorer, averaging 13.2 ppg.
• Head coach Steve Prohm is in his second season as Racers head coach. He owns a 46-7 overall record, including 21-3 in OVC play.

What You Should Know

The Series: This is the 117th meeting between the two OVC rivals, Austin Peay and Murray State, with the Governors trailing, 76-41. The Racers won this season’s earlier meeting, 71-68, January 12th in Clarksville. The Racers also swept the season series from the Governors a year ago. The Racers own a four-game winning streak in the series.

Deeper Meanings

What A Win Would Mean: The Govs would win their second OVC game…they would improve to 6-17…they would go 1-0 in February…it would be the Govs’ first OVC road win…it would be the Govs’ first road win in 2012-13…they would go to 42-76 all time against Murray State…it would snap a four-game losing streak in the series…it would make Dave Loos 20-31 all-time against Murray State…it would make Loos 1-3 against current Murray State coach Steve Prohm…it would be Loos’ 451st career victory.

What A Loss Would Mean: The Govs would drop 13 games below the .500 mark at 5-18…the Govs would lose their sixth straight game…the Govs would fall to 0-6 against OVC West teams…the Govs would fall to 0-10 on the road this season…it would be APSU’s fifth straight loss in the series…it would be Dave Loos’ 328th APSU loss and 381st all-time.

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