Murray State Basketball Schedule: What to Expect

The Murray State Basketball Schedule is now available. Get a first look at what to expect from the Racers this season.

Introduction

Murray State will be looking to make some noise in the NCAA tournament this year after a strong regular season Led by star guard Ja Morant, the Racers will be a team to watch out for in the upcoming tournament. Here is a look at Murray State’s schedule and what to expect from the team this year.

The Murray State Racers

The Murray State Racers are set to have an action-packed Basketball season this year, with plenty of home games to catch at the CFSB Center. Here’s a look at what Murray State fans can expect from their team this season.

The Racers will open their season at home on November 6th against Southeast Missouri State followed by a string of home games against Alabama A&M (Nov. 10), Jacksonville State (Nov. 13), and UT Martin (Nov. 17). The Racers will then hit the road for a tough matchup against in-state rival Western Kentucky on Nov. 20, before returning home to take on Morehead State on November 24th.

December will see the Racers take on some tough non-conference opponents, including a road game against Louisville on December 2nd and a Home game against Memphis on December 15th. The Racers will then finish up their non-Conference Schedule with a string of more manageable opponents, including Eastern Kentucky (Dec. 18), Northern Kentucky (Dec. 21), and Lehigh (Dec. 29).

Conference play will begin in earnest in January, with the Racers facing off against OVC foes such as Belmont (Jan. 3), Tennessee Tech (Jan. 10), Austin Peay (Jan 4), and SIU Edwardsville (Jan 18). The Racers will also have some important home games during this stretch of the season, including a meeting with Evansville on Jan 22nd and a rematch with in-state rival Western Kentucky on Jan 29th.

February will see the bulk of the Racers’ conference play with crucial games against East Tennessee State (Feb 1), MurrayState Basketball Schedule has them playing more than 30 games total this season Southern Miss(Feb 8), UT Chattanooga(Feb 15)and again against East Tennessee State(Feb 22). The month will end with another big game against intra-state rival Morehead State(Feb 26).

The Racers will close out their regular season in early March with three more crucial OVC matchups, against Tennessee State(March 1), Jacksonville State(March 5) and Austin Peay(March 8). The OVC tournament is scheduled to begin March 11th and continue through the 14th, hosted this year by Evansville; which means that if the Racers want to make it to NCAA Tournament they’ll have to win it all there.

The 2017-2018 Schedule

The 2017-2018 season is going to be an eventful one for Murray State fans. The team will have a lot of new faces, as well as some familiar ones. Here is a look at what to expect from the upcoming season

The Murray State Racers will open the 2017-2018 season with an exhibition game against crosstown rivals, the Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers, on October 30th. This will be followed by the home opener against Union College on November 10th. The Racers will then hit the road for games against Louisville and Vanderbilt before returning home to host Southeast Missouri State on December 2nd.

The Racers will have a tough stretch in late December and early January, with games against Auburn, Ole Miss and Tennessee. But they will look to Bounce Back when they host Belmont on January 6th. The OVC schedule will start on January 11th when Murray State travels to take on Eastern Illinois

The team will then have a string of home games including matchups against Jacksonville State Austin Peay and UT Martin. On February 8th, the Racers will travel to Morehead State before returning home for games against Southeast Missouri State and UTEP.

The final stretch of the season will see the team hit the road for games against Tennessee State and Eastern Kentucky before finishing up at home against SIU Edwardsville on March 3rd.

Key Games

There are a few key games that Murray State will have to play in order to make it to the NCAA tournament These games will be against opponents such as Belmont, Austin Peay and Jacksonville State The Murray State Racers will need to win these games in order to prove that they are a top team in the nation.

Belmont is always a tough opponent for Murray State The Bruins are a well-coached team that is always tough to beat at home. Austin Peay is another team that the Racers will have to be careful of. The Governors have a lot of talent and could easily pull off an upset. Jacksonville State is a team that is dangerous because of their style of play. The Gamecocks like to slow the pace down and make opponents play their game. If Murray State can win these key games, they should be in good shape to make the NCAA tournament

Predictions

This season, the Murray State Racers are predicted to win the Ohio Valley conference tournament and head to the NCAA tournament as a Cinderella team. The Racers return all five starters from last year’s team that went 28-5 and won the OVC Regular Season and tournament titles. Head Coach Matt McMahon says the team has been working hard in practice and is excited for the season to start.

The Racers will open their season on November 5th at home against Alabama A&M. They will then play Gardner-Webb, Arkansas-Pine Bluff UT Martin, and Southeast Missouri State before heading to Hawaii for a tournament against teams from the West Coast Conference. After returning from Hawaii, Murray State will play Louisville, Memphis, Auburn, Eastern Kentucky, Belmont, and Tennessee Tech before beginning OVC play.

Murray State is expected to be one of the best teams in the country this season and should have no problem winning the OVC again. They will likely be a high seed in the NCAA Tournament and will have a chance to make a deep run in March Madness

Conclusion

The Murray State Racers are set to have another great season. They have an experienced core of players and a solid recruiting class The schedule is tough, but the team is up for the challenge. Expect them to make a run at the conference championship and the NCAA Tournament