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Neal Bradley's Racers Basketball Update: 13-Game Hot Streak Ahead of Tonight's Game

Tab Brockman, goracers.com

The Murray State Racer Basketball team is riding a 13-game winning streak going into tonight's game with Eastern State University. Tracy Ross speaks with "Voice of the Racers" Neal Bradley on Sounds Good, with a recap of recent games and his thoughts on some of the potentially tough match-ups ahead.

Tennessee Tech, Jan. 8 (83 - 67)

Neal Bradley says the Racers were in control from start to finish defensively and played well offensively. The stats for this game are misleading: Cameron Payne had 24 points, Jarvis Williams had 16 points and 9 rebounds, Jeffery Moss had 10 points and T.J. Sapp had 4, but Bradley says he was one of the best players in the game defensively.

Jacksonville State, Jan. 11 (84 - 57)

A blowout from the get go, Bradley says. The Racers wre locked in at every phase. They had 23 rebounds and only 8 turnovers. There wasn't a bad stat. The Racers shared the ball well with 18 assists.

Belmont, Jan. 15 (92 - 77)

Belmont has a great rivalry with Murray State. This year, however, they have some youth issues. Their top players Craig Bradshaw and Taylor Barnette played well, but the Racers put up great numbers: Payne had 23 points and 4 three-pointers, 15 from J.T. Sapp, 19 points and 10 rebounds from Jarvis Williams.

Tennessee State, Jan. 17 (91 - 72)

For the lucky 13 straight win, the Racers emerged to the court with new gold uniforms, surprising fans and their opponents. The starters came in with a huge lead and Prohm put a lot of bench players on the court.

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While not yet halfway through the OVC schedule, Tracy Ross says the question has to be asked, "Can this team run the table in the conference this year?" Bradley says he wouldn't call it just yet with some tough matches ahead against Eastern Illinois and Edwardsville. He says this is a critical week for the Racers.

Eastern Illinois, Jan. 22

Bradley says their defense is unconventional. They'll lure a team into getting a few outside shots and sucker them into shooting - then missing threes with added defense. Their weakness is in offense, but they have a slight player named Cornell Johnston who, despite his size, is a tough player and a deceptively good shooter.

SIU Edwardsville, Jan. 24

Another tough match, Bradley says. He says there's something about their home court that gives them an advantage when it comes to making three-point shots. One of their top players, Kris Davis was the national leader in three point shots last year and is having a good run this year, too. The team's fans "respectfully dislike" Murray State, so it's a lively atmosphere and a good offensive team.

Eastern Kentucky, Jan. 29

Eastern Kentucky is similar to Blemont. They have a good coach, play an odd defense, get in a ton of steals, shoot threes and get backdoor layups. They had a disappointing season last year, but have picked it up this year. This match will be broadcast on ESPNU.

More about MSU Racers Men's Basketball

Tracy started working for WKMS in 1994 while attending Murray State University. After receiving his Bachelors and Masters degrees from MSU he was hired as Operations/Web/Sports Director in 2000. Tracy hosted All Things Considered from 2004-2012 and has served as host/producer of several music shows including Cafe Jazz, and Jazz Horizons. In 2001, Tracy revived Beyond The Edge, a legacy alternative music program that had been on hiatus for several years. Tracy was named Program Director in 2011 and created the midday music and conversation program Sounds Good in 2012 which he hosts Monday-Thursday. Tracy lives in Murray with his wife, son and daughter.
Matt Markgraf joined the WKMS team as a student in January 2007. He's served in a variety of roles over the years: as News Director March 2016-September 2019 and previously as the New Media & Promotions Coordinator beginning in 2011. Prior to that, he was a graduate and undergraduate assistant. He is currently the host of the international music show Imported on Sunday nights at 10 p.m.
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