OVC TOURNAMENT ROUND ONE
Final Score: Tennessee State 74, Morehead State 67
Records: TSU (18-14, 10-9), MSU (13-18, 7-12)
Location: Evansville, Ind.
Venue: Ford Center
Attendance: 593

EVANSVILLE, Ind. --- The Tennessee State men's basketball team advances to the quarterfinals of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament after surviving an overtime matchup with No. 8 seed Morehead State in round one on Wednesday evening in the Ford Center.

Junior Ravel Moody had a career night along with Carlos Marshall Jr. as the two led the Tigers in scoring with 14 points apiece – a career-high for Moody. Defensively, the duo combined for eight steals, two blocks.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Tiger Leaders
  • Points: Ravel Moody and Carlos Marshall, Jr. - 14
  • Rebounds: Wesley Harris - 8
  • Assists: Michael Littlejohn - 3
  • Steals: Carlos Marshall, Jr. - 5
  • Blocks: Ravel Moody - 2
• With 7:15 left in the game, Carlos Marshall Jr. was the only player in double digits with 12 points, marking the 17^th game with double-digit scoring.
• 13-of-20 made free throws were made in overtime. Only two field goals, one per team, were made in extra period.
• Moody's 14 points, three steals and two blocks were all career-highs for the junior college transfer.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Three Morehead State turnovers held the Eagle offense to just two shots in four minutes of action. Wesley Harris and Shakem Johnson worked the paint to mark a tied game at first media timeout, 4-4.
• After two non-scoring possessions Michael Littlejohn put hands on the ball giving him the chance he needed to hit his first three-pointer of the night. Point guard Mark Freeman blocked his first shot of the season helping the Tigers to a five-point run.
• In just 10 minutes of action, newcomer Ravel Moody registered two steals and five points, giving the Tigers the lead, 24-22.
• Big Blue increased its lead as the Eagles ended the half on a three-minute scoring drought, 28-23.
• As the shot clock expired, Shakem Johnson, in the paint, dished it out to Harris in the corner for a step back three-point bucket, kicking off a run of four-three pointers.
• The Eagles answered with its own 10-point run to take the lead before Moody hit two free throws.
• With under a minute on the clock, Morehead State pulled up for a second-chance jumper to take the lead.
• Out of a timeout, with three seconds on the clock, Marshall took hold of the inbound, and tied the game at 59. Overtime.
• TSU went 4-0 to kick off overtime. 22-of-the-24 shots made were from the charity stripe, 13 from Tennessee State, helping TSU outscore MSU 15-8 in overtime to win its first OVC tournament game.

GAME NOTES

• This marks the 7th meeting in the OVC Tournament between the TSU and MSU.
• TSU is 5-2 when taking on Morehead State in the tourney.
• The last time the teams met at the tournament, TSU defeated the Eagles, 59- 53 in the semifinals, to advance to the Championship game, only to fall to No. 1 seed Murray State, 54-52 in 2012.
• Big Blue is on a three-game win streak over the Eagles when meeting in post-season play.
• The Tigers were administered an administrative technical foul.
• The last time the Tigers went into overtime in the first round of the OVC tournament was in 2016-17. Big Blue fell to SEMO, 78-75.
• This marks the second time in Brian "Penny" Collins' tenure the Tigers have gone into overtime against Morehead State.
• Michael Littlejohn, Carlos Marshall and Shakem Johnson, three-of-the-five TSU starters, fouled out.

UP NEXT

Big Blue will take on Eastern Kentucky in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament quarterfinals Thursday in the Ford Center. Tip on ESPN+ is set for 6:30 pm.
 

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