Clarksville, TN – Austin Peay State University’s basketball team dropped a 61-50 decision to Morehead State Wednesday on Gary Mathews Court at F&M Bank Arena.
DeMarcus Sharp led Austin Peay (3-5) in scoring for the sixth time this season with 20 points – his third-straight 20-point performance through eight games – however, the Governors were unable to overcome a hot-shooting Morehead State (5-3) team that made 52.4 percent of their shots from the field in the second half.
Morehead State jumped out to an early 10-3 lead in the opening five minutes after making four of its first seven shots from the field and limiting the APSU Govs to just one basket on as many attempts.
Following the slow start, the Govs went on a 9-0 run after forcing seven Eagles’ turnovers, with the first six points of that run coming directly off MSU miscues. Dezi Jones gave Austin Peay its first lead of the night at 11-10 with 10:24 remaining before Sai Witt split a pair of attempts at the charity stripe to extend the Govs lead to a pair.
After Morehead State’s Riley Minix tied the game at 12 prior to the under-8 media timeout, Ja’monta Black splashed his second three-pointer of the night to regain the advantage for the hometown Govs.
The two teams traded the lead over the next four minutes before back-to-back threes by Dez White and Jones gave the Govs their largest lead of the night at 25-21 with under two minutes remaining. Morehead State went on to outscore APSU 6-2 over the final 87 seconds to tie the two former Ohio Valley Conference rivals at 27 heading into the break.
Sharp led the APSU Govs with eight points at the break, while Black was second on the team with six points after making both of his attempts from deep.
The Eagles held the Governors without a make on their first seven attempts of the second half, extending their lead to as many as six before Black’s third three-pointer sparked a 10-2 APSU run to regain the lead following Sharp turnaround jumper with 13:15 remaining in regulation.
Six straight Eagles’ made baskets extended their lead to 50-43, and they led by 10 with 6:07 remaining. Sharp scored the next six points for APSU, with his final score, the front end of a one-and-one attempt at the line, cutting the Govs deficit to seven with 3:38 left.
The Govs were held scoreless for the final 3:38 of Wednesday’s game, and dropped the 11-point decision to Morehead State on their home court.
The Difference
When looking at the box score, the biggest difference between the two teams was the rebounding total, as the Eagles out-rebounded the APSU Govs 39-19 and 27-7 in the second half; however, MSU only scored four second-chance points to the Govs’ two.
The biggest difference in the outcome was the Eagles’ second-half efficiency, as they held the Govs to seven-straight misses from the field both at the start and end of the second half – limiting them to 29.6 percent (8-for-27) in the frame while connecting on 11 of their 21 attempts.
Inside The Box Score
Austin Peay State University fell to 56-60 all-time against Morehead State and 38-19 against the Eagles in Clarksville.
DeMarcus Sharp led APSU in scoring for the sixth time this season with his third-straight 20-point performance.
Sharp is the first Governor to score 20-plus points in three-straight games since Terry Taylor accomplished such on February 13th-20th, 2021.
Dezi Jones tied his career-best mark and set a new season high with a game-high four steals.
Hansel Enmanuel earned his first start as a Governor, playing a season-high 28 minutes.
Enmanuel led the game with two blocks, and now has recorded at least one block in six of the last seven games.
Austin Peay State University’s 19 forced turnovers are its second-most in a game this season, trailing only 21 at UTEP, on November 17th.
The APSU Govs’ 10 turnovers are its fewest against a Division I opponent this season.
Coach’s Corner
With Austin Peay Head Coach Corey Gipson
Overall thoughts… “The first thing I told the guys is they played very well defensively. We forced 19 turnovers. Morehead State also played a very good game defensively. I told them it would be the first one to 60. And with the first one to 60, you have to make sure that your assignment is correct in all facets of the game. That’s offensively and defensively. But with assignment correctness, you have to be very good in late shot clock offensively and late shot clock defensively. That’s why it’s the first one to 60. Whenever it’s a 60-point game, you have fewer possessions, so you have less room for slippage.”
On the difference in rebounding… “It’s very crucial. When you want it to be crucial, you have to say, when it comes to rebounds, how many points did they get off second-chance rebounds? Not many. So then you say, where did their rebounds come from? They came from defensive rebounds. They got the shots that we missed. … What I can tell you is we only had four offensive rebounds, and that’s not good enough. Ask LeBron James how they feel after traveling. Ask Paul George how that feels. I don’t think they can even use that as an excuse. … That’s just a part of life. It’s a way of life. We put that schedule together so we can learn to grind it out and build up endurance. That’s just part of it. We welcome suffering. Suffering is a way of life. And you have to welcome it. And you have to be in the dark before you see the light.”
Follow The APSU Govs
For news and updates throughout the 2023-24 season, follow the APSU men’s basketball team on X and Instagram (@GovsMBB), on Facebook (Austin Peay Men’s Basketball), or check back at LetsGoPeay.com.
Next Up For APSU Men’s Basketball
The Austin Peay State University men’s basketball team face another former Ohio Valley Conference rival in Tennessee State this weekend when they travel to Nashville for a Saturday 6:00pm contest against the Tigers in the Gentry Center.
