by David Cassilo / @dcassilo
No team in college basketball will go undefeated this season after No. 9 Murray State was upset at home on Thursday night, falling to Tennessee State, 72-68. The Racers started the season 23-0.
Early on, it seemed like business as usual for Murray State. It held a 40-33 halftime lead, and its star player, junior guard Isaiah Canaan, was on his way to a 31-point night. But everything fell apart in the second half as the Racers managed just 28 points.
Down 69-68 with 11.2 seconds left, Canaan turned the ball over with a chance to take the lead. After Tennessee State sank two free throws, the Racers once again failed to get off a shot.
Despite the loss, what Murray State accomplished already this season was not lost on its head coach.
From the Memphis Commercial Appeal:
“I’ve got to do a better job in some areas to make sure we’re doing a better job executing at times,” said head coach Steve Prohm. “But, I’m proud. I’m extremely proud of our guys. We had an amazing run, 23 wins in a row. I’m sure we set a lot of records along the way, but now we’ve got to be totally locked in on winning a conference championship.”
It’s unlikely we’ll see Murray State return to the top-10 anytime soon, but if it can finish the regular season without a loss, it might have locked up an NCAA tournament bid regardless of how it does in its conference tournament.
