I am overdue on reporting the results of the 2007 O'Reilly Ohio Valley Conference Mens and Womens Basketball Tournament, so here are the results. EKU and Southeast Missouri would eventually win the tournaments. All games were held at the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville, Tennessee.
MENS SEMI-FINALS
#1 AUSTIN PEAY 65, #5 SAMFORD 55
The Governors had to fight off another opponent, this time the Samford Bulldogs, to advance to the OVC Championship. Peay led 35-30 at the half, but the Bulldogs would go on a 12-0 run to take a 42-35 lead with 11:18 left on the clock. Peay then had an 11-2 run of their own, taking a 48-44 lead with 7:11 left. The Govs held on the rest of the way to advance to Saturday's championship.
#2 EASTERN KENTUCKY 57, #3 TENNESSEE TECH 54
This was a closely fought contest which the Colonels would eventually find a way to win. EKU held off the Golden Eagles, who fought fiercely in a losing effort. TTU would hold six-point leads twice through the first half and went to the break up 27-25. EKU came out taking its lead with not even three minutes into the final half's clock, and would hold a tight grasp on that lead all the way through. The Colonels held a 47-38 lead with 8:40 to go in regulation, but Tech would fight back. The Golden Eagles would hit four from the charity stripe late to cut the EKU lead to just three with over a minute left. With a half-minute left, TTU put in a shot to cut the score Colonels lead to one. Eastern Kentucky finally would hold off Tennessee Tech to advance to the championship against Austin Peay Saturday.
MEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP
#2 EASTERN KENTUCKY 63, #1 AUSTIN PEAY 62
In an upset bid, the regular season champ Govs were stunned by the Colonels as Eastern Kentucky claimed the 2006-07 OVC Championship. Peay tried to deal with cold hands, as they failed to get a shot in the bucket for nearly 10 minutes in the second half. The Govs held a one-point lead with just seconds on the clock, when EKU's Josh Taylor found an opening and drove to the basket and put up Eastern's winning points with just 2.9 left on the clock. Those two points were Taylor's only points of the game. EKU will now wait for all the other conference tournaments to finish and will get ready to play in the NCAA Tournament. Austin Peay will wait and hope for an NIT bid.
WOMEN'S SEMI-FINALS
#1 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 57, #4 SAMFORD 51
The top-ranked Redhawks continued their bid for a repeat against the Bulldogs. Sonya Daugherty led SEMO with 21 points. Veronica Pike led Samford with 18 points and Alex Munday chipped in 15 points in the losing effort. SEMO now heads to their second-consecutive OVC Championship game.
#2 MURRAY STATE 66, #6 UT-MARTIN 65 (OT)
The Murray Racers controlled the tempo from the get-go, leading 18-6 with 10:59 on the clock in the first half. MSU had as much as a 24-12 lead, but Nicole Holman put in consecutive three shots to bring Martin to within three, down 24-21. Murray held a 26-24 advantage going into the break at the half.
Murray still controlled the advantage, leading by 38-33 with 15:48 in regulation. Martin wasn't ready to die, however, and found themselves on an 8-0 run, taking a 41-38 lead. MSU soon got back in the swing, but the lead would wobble between both teams until regulation would end with an 57-all knotted score.
Martin hit two charity shots to take the early overtime lead, and would lead most of the way until the Racers began to fight back with 2:25 left on the overtime clock. Murray would face a struggle the rest of the way, but held on to a victory and will face top-ranked SEMO in the women's championship on Saturday.
WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP
#1 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 62, #2 MURRAY STATE 60
The Redhawks survived a surprisingly close matchup against the Racers to become the OVC's women's representative in the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight season. SEMO's Lachelle Lyles made the layup with 6.5 seconds left to put the 'Hawks up by the final margin.
MSU lagged by 16 points at their worst, and was behind by double digits through most of the second half. The Racers came back to tie things up at 60 with 16.7 seconds left, but just could not complete an upset bid. Murray will now return to Kentucky and prepare for next season.
Showing posts with label OVC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label OVC. Show all posts
Monday, March 5, 2007
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
OVC TOURNAMENT FIRST FOUND WOMEN'S ACTION: Tennessee Tech fights back, but falls short
The first set of games from the 2007 O'Reilly Ohio Valley Conference Mens and Womens Basketball Tournament were played last night, and there were comebacks and even an upset on the women's side of the court. Here is a brief recap of all the action from the women's tournament.
#1 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 58, #8 AUSTIN PEAY 54
(CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo.-ConState Sports) The defending 2006-2007 OVC tournament champion SEMO Redhawks faced a bit of a struggle against the Lady Governors, but managed to prevail. Ashley Lovelady led SEMO with 20 points and six rebounds. SEMO jumped out to an early 11-5 lead, but the Lady Govs stayed close, and the score read 30-28 SEMO at the midway break. SEMO now goes to Nashville to attempt a repeat of its OVC title.
#2 MURRAY STATE 68, #7 EASTERN KENTUCKY 66
(MURRAY, Ky.-ConState Sports) The number two-seeded Murray Racers survived a close scare, as the EKU Colonels put up a strong fight to attempt the upset. Ashley Hayes led the way for the Racers with 26 points, including the two free throws with 0.4 seconds left in regulation. Murray trailed by two late when freshman guard Mallory "Lucky" Luckett put in the tieing points with 14.9 seconds left. EKU had a shot, missed and Hayes was fouled, giving her the opportunity to get the winning points. Its on to Nashville for Murray, where the Racers will try to advance to the OVC finals.
#6 UT MARTIN 61, #3 MOREHEAD STATE 57
(MOREHEAD, Ky.-ConState Sports) In a surprising upset, the Martin Skyhawks found a way to top the three-seeded Morehead Eagles. The Eagles went cold in shooting, getting only 38 percent of their shots to go in. Martin was up as much as 49-38 with 9:21 left, when the Eagles attempted a failing comeback bid. Martin led most of the way through this game, leading by six with 8:57 left in the first. Morehead came back and led 23-22 with 5:48 left before the break. Martin came back and led at halftime 31-28. Martin goes to Nashville and will attempt to test No. 2 Murray State on Friday.
#4 SAMFORD 63, #5 TENNESSEE TECH 60
(BIRMINGHAM, Ala.-ConState Sports) The Samford Bulldogs came out strong from the gate, and held off a huge comeback attempt by the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles to advance to the semifinal round. Samford took the early 8-0 advantage with 3:19 gone in the first after Alex Munday put in a three. The Golden Eagles continued with fairly cold shooting and several crucial turnovers early, and found themselves down 29-15 at the halftime break.
Tech recovered strongly and put this one back into play after a quick 12-2 run right from the get-go in the second half. Cara Reed put up a three to cut the Bulldogs lead to 31-27 with 16:28 to play. The Golden Eagles came all the way back and led 39-37 after Blair Bowens put in a shot with 12:44 to go. Tech senior Kendall Cavin put in a three to give Tech the 49-45 lead with 6:13 left. The game bounced around from there. Samford would comeback to tie it, 51-51, before jumping ahead 54-51. The Golden Eagles would then score the next four points to take a 55-54 advantage with 2:40 left. Samford shot four from the charity stripe to take a three-point lead with 1:38 left. The Bulldogs held a four-point lead, 61-57, with 19 seconds left. Tech put in a three to cut Samford to 61-60, but Megan Wilderotter put in a pair from the charity line to prove the winning difference. Tech had another opportunity at the basket, but the shot just didn't go in. The Bulldogs now go to Nashville to oppose the top-seeded SEMO Redhawks. Munday scored 20 to lead Samford. For Tennessee Tech, senior standout Kendall Cavin and Blair Bowens put in 19 points apiece.
This was the final game played in the 45-year-old Seibert Hall. Next year, the Bulldogs will play in Pete Hanna Arena.
SEMO is the favorite to win the OVC women's tournament this year. An upset bid could be done by Murray, but I wouldn't really count on it. The team to watch next year is our own Tennessee Tech, the regular-season co-champions of the OVC in the 2005-06 season. Tech is the winningest OVC women's program over the course of history, and among the top ten winningest Division I women's programs in history. Tech is, also, the team who has won the most OVC titles with nine from its first title in the 1981-82 season. The Golden Eagles are bouncing back from the loss of standout Emily Christian, a senior last year, as well as dealing with a coaching change. The 20-year head coach Bill Worrell retired after last season, and one of his assistant coaches, Amy Brown, was handed the job. Brown has done an outstanding job in her first season, and her assistant coaching staff is strong as well. Tech will deal with the loss of three senior players, led by Cavin, in next years season. However, two new sophomore transfers, former Vanderbilt standout Holly Rogers and former Ball State player Rebecca Howerton, should pick up a lot of the slack. We, also, have three good players who will be seniors next season in Cara Reed, Marissa Hensley and Kristina Tyler. Juniors should be strong as well, led by Meagan Lyons and Bowens. Whitney Mayo and Jennifer Hood, who will be sophomores, should step up quite a bit. New freshmen will be added to the mix as well. Look for Tennessee Tech to contend strongly for the No. 1 seed in the 2007-08 OVC season.
Thanks to the OVC for information used in the above game summaries.
#1 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 58, #8 AUSTIN PEAY 54
(CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo.-ConState Sports) The defending 2006-2007 OVC tournament champion SEMO Redhawks faced a bit of a struggle against the Lady Governors, but managed to prevail. Ashley Lovelady led SEMO with 20 points and six rebounds. SEMO jumped out to an early 11-5 lead, but the Lady Govs stayed close, and the score read 30-28 SEMO at the midway break. SEMO now goes to Nashville to attempt a repeat of its OVC title.
#2 MURRAY STATE 68, #7 EASTERN KENTUCKY 66
(MURRAY, Ky.-ConState Sports) The number two-seeded Murray Racers survived a close scare, as the EKU Colonels put up a strong fight to attempt the upset. Ashley Hayes led the way for the Racers with 26 points, including the two free throws with 0.4 seconds left in regulation. Murray trailed by two late when freshman guard Mallory "Lucky" Luckett put in the tieing points with 14.9 seconds left. EKU had a shot, missed and Hayes was fouled, giving her the opportunity to get the winning points. Its on to Nashville for Murray, where the Racers will try to advance to the OVC finals.
#6 UT MARTIN 61, #3 MOREHEAD STATE 57
(MOREHEAD, Ky.-ConState Sports) In a surprising upset, the Martin Skyhawks found a way to top the three-seeded Morehead Eagles. The Eagles went cold in shooting, getting only 38 percent of their shots to go in. Martin was up as much as 49-38 with 9:21 left, when the Eagles attempted a failing comeback bid. Martin led most of the way through this game, leading by six with 8:57 left in the first. Morehead came back and led 23-22 with 5:48 left before the break. Martin came back and led at halftime 31-28. Martin goes to Nashville and will attempt to test No. 2 Murray State on Friday.
#4 SAMFORD 63, #5 TENNESSEE TECH 60
(BIRMINGHAM, Ala.-ConState Sports) The Samford Bulldogs came out strong from the gate, and held off a huge comeback attempt by the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles to advance to the semifinal round. Samford took the early 8-0 advantage with 3:19 gone in the first after Alex Munday put in a three. The Golden Eagles continued with fairly cold shooting and several crucial turnovers early, and found themselves down 29-15 at the halftime break.
Tech recovered strongly and put this one back into play after a quick 12-2 run right from the get-go in the second half. Cara Reed put up a three to cut the Bulldogs lead to 31-27 with 16:28 to play. The Golden Eagles came all the way back and led 39-37 after Blair Bowens put in a shot with 12:44 to go. Tech senior Kendall Cavin put in a three to give Tech the 49-45 lead with 6:13 left. The game bounced around from there. Samford would comeback to tie it, 51-51, before jumping ahead 54-51. The Golden Eagles would then score the next four points to take a 55-54 advantage with 2:40 left. Samford shot four from the charity stripe to take a three-point lead with 1:38 left. The Bulldogs held a four-point lead, 61-57, with 19 seconds left. Tech put in a three to cut Samford to 61-60, but Megan Wilderotter put in a pair from the charity line to prove the winning difference. Tech had another opportunity at the basket, but the shot just didn't go in. The Bulldogs now go to Nashville to oppose the top-seeded SEMO Redhawks. Munday scored 20 to lead Samford. For Tennessee Tech, senior standout Kendall Cavin and Blair Bowens put in 19 points apiece.
This was the final game played in the 45-year-old Seibert Hall. Next year, the Bulldogs will play in Pete Hanna Arena.
SEMO is the favorite to win the OVC women's tournament this year. An upset bid could be done by Murray, but I wouldn't really count on it. The team to watch next year is our own Tennessee Tech, the regular-season co-champions of the OVC in the 2005-06 season. Tech is the winningest OVC women's program over the course of history, and among the top ten winningest Division I women's programs in history. Tech is, also, the team who has won the most OVC titles with nine from its first title in the 1981-82 season. The Golden Eagles are bouncing back from the loss of standout Emily Christian, a senior last year, as well as dealing with a coaching change. The 20-year head coach Bill Worrell retired after last season, and one of his assistant coaches, Amy Brown, was handed the job. Brown has done an outstanding job in her first season, and her assistant coaching staff is strong as well. Tech will deal with the loss of three senior players, led by Cavin, in next years season. However, two new sophomore transfers, former Vanderbilt standout Holly Rogers and former Ball State player Rebecca Howerton, should pick up a lot of the slack. We, also, have three good players who will be seniors next season in Cara Reed, Marissa Hensley and Kristina Tyler. Juniors should be strong as well, led by Meagan Lyons and Bowens. Whitney Mayo and Jennifer Hood, who will be sophomores, should step up quite a bit. New freshmen will be added to the mix as well. Look for Tennessee Tech to contend strongly for the No. 1 seed in the 2007-08 OVC season.
Thanks to the OVC for information used in the above game summaries.
OVC TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND MEN'S ACTION: Austin Peay wins close one, Tennessee Tech wins in a rout
The first round of the 2007 O'Reilly Ohio Valley Conference Mens and Womens Basketball Tournament was played last night, and there was surprises to be had, although there were expected finishes as well. Here is a recap on the men's action. A recap on the women's action will come soon.
#1 AUSTIN PEAY 89, #8 TENNESSEE STATE 84 OT
(CLARKSVILLE, Tenn.-ConStateman Sports) In a game that should have been a breeze for the top-seeded Governors, the TSU Tigers showed some unexpected fight. The Govs led for most of the game, but the Tigers would come back to tie it four times until finally taking their first lead with a shot by Andrae Belton to make it TSU 69-67 with 55 seconds left. Fernandez Lockett would tie it all up for the Govs with 30 seconds left, and the game went to overtime.
In overtime, the Govs went on a 8-2 run early, and would eventually hold of the Tigers to advance to the semifinal round in Nashville. Dreake Reed had a total of 27 points for Austin Peay.
#2 EASTERN KENTUCKY 63, #7 MOREHEAD STATE 45
(RICHMOND, Ky.-ConStatesman Sports) The second-seeded Colonels had no trouble holding off the Eagles, as EKU had three players in double-figures. EKU went on a 16-0 run for nine minutes early, improving their position to a 25-8 lead at the time, and led 40-23 at the half. EKU now heads to the semifinals in Nashville for third time in the last four years.
#3 TENNESSEE TECH 88, #6 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 60
(COOKEVILLE, Tenn.-ConState Sports) The Tech Golden Eagles started slow, but eventually gained momentum over the icy-shooting SEMO Redhawks on the way to 28-point rout. Belton Rivers and Anthony Fisher had 34 points between them as they led the Golden Eagles to the semifinal round in Nashville, where they will play #2 Eastern Kentucky on Friday. Tech had a total of four players in double-figures in scoring, including Rivers and Fisher.
#5 SAMFORD 70, #4 MURRAY STATE 60
(MURRAY, Ky.-ConState Sports) In the only men's upset of the night, the defending OVC Tournament champion from the 2005-06 season, the Murray Racers, got knocked off by the visiting Samford Bulldogs. Samford had four players in double-figure scoring, led by Randall Gulina and Jerry Smith with 20 points apiece, and the team as a whole was 75 percent from the floor in the final half. Smith himself was perfect from the charity line, as he went 10-for-10 there. The game was tied 26-26 at the half, and the Bulldogs then went on a 10-0 run and never gave back the lead.
The Bulldogs will now receive an even greater test when they travel to Nashville to play top-seeded Austin Peay on Friday.
The OVC race just may be wide open. Austin Peay was the clear favorite coming into the tournament, but their tough outing against TSU may prove the Govs to be vulnerable. Our Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles and the EKU Colonels are the most likely for any upset bids. However, Samford is showing itself to be a formidable contender, and has a shot at upsetting Austin Peay on Friday. Stay tuned as we keep abreast of all the action in the OVC tournament as it switches now to the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashvegas, Tennessee.
Thanks to the OVC for some of the information used for the game summaries.
#1 AUSTIN PEAY 89, #8 TENNESSEE STATE 84 OT
(CLARKSVILLE, Tenn.-ConStateman Sports) In a game that should have been a breeze for the top-seeded Governors, the TSU Tigers showed some unexpected fight. The Govs led for most of the game, but the Tigers would come back to tie it four times until finally taking their first lead with a shot by Andrae Belton to make it TSU 69-67 with 55 seconds left. Fernandez Lockett would tie it all up for the Govs with 30 seconds left, and the game went to overtime.
In overtime, the Govs went on a 8-2 run early, and would eventually hold of the Tigers to advance to the semifinal round in Nashville. Dreake Reed had a total of 27 points for Austin Peay.
#2 EASTERN KENTUCKY 63, #7 MOREHEAD STATE 45
(RICHMOND, Ky.-ConStatesman Sports) The second-seeded Colonels had no trouble holding off the Eagles, as EKU had three players in double-figures. EKU went on a 16-0 run for nine minutes early, improving their position to a 25-8 lead at the time, and led 40-23 at the half. EKU now heads to the semifinals in Nashville for third time in the last four years.
#3 TENNESSEE TECH 88, #6 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 60
(COOKEVILLE, Tenn.-ConState Sports) The Tech Golden Eagles started slow, but eventually gained momentum over the icy-shooting SEMO Redhawks on the way to 28-point rout. Belton Rivers and Anthony Fisher had 34 points between them as they led the Golden Eagles to the semifinal round in Nashville, where they will play #2 Eastern Kentucky on Friday. Tech had a total of four players in double-figures in scoring, including Rivers and Fisher.
#5 SAMFORD 70, #4 MURRAY STATE 60
(MURRAY, Ky.-ConState Sports) In the only men's upset of the night, the defending OVC Tournament champion from the 2005-06 season, the Murray Racers, got knocked off by the visiting Samford Bulldogs. Samford had four players in double-figure scoring, led by Randall Gulina and Jerry Smith with 20 points apiece, and the team as a whole was 75 percent from the floor in the final half. Smith himself was perfect from the charity line, as he went 10-for-10 there. The game was tied 26-26 at the half, and the Bulldogs then went on a 10-0 run and never gave back the lead.
The Bulldogs will now receive an even greater test when they travel to Nashville to play top-seeded Austin Peay on Friday.
The OVC race just may be wide open. Austin Peay was the clear favorite coming into the tournament, but their tough outing against TSU may prove the Govs to be vulnerable. Our Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles and the EKU Colonels are the most likely for any upset bids. However, Samford is showing itself to be a formidable contender, and has a shot at upsetting Austin Peay on Friday. Stay tuned as we keep abreast of all the action in the OVC tournament as it switches now to the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashvegas, Tennessee.
Thanks to the OVC for some of the information used for the game summaries.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
FIRST ROUND OF OVC TOURNAMENT IS DONE. WATCH FOR NEWS TOMORROW
The first set of games from the 2007 O'Reilly Ohio Valley Conference Mens and Womens Basketball Tournament are completed, and the winning teams will now head to Nashville. The time is now late (12:06 AM CST) and I have to wake up at my usual time of about 6:30 in the morning, so I will now turn in for the night. I plan to post the results and briefs on this blog sometime by mid-afternoon Wednesday. Until then, that's your news for Tuesday, February 27, 2007. Thank you and good night. Just trying to bring my broadcasting journalism skills in. I'm working on a bit of a sign-off. :)
Saturday, February 24, 2007
TENNESSEE TECH HOOPS UPDATE: OVC Tournament set, Golden Eagles to play Tuesday
The Ohio Valley Conference regular season is done, and the teams are ready for the 2007 O'Reilly Auto Parts OVC Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments. It has been an exciting regular season, and we are shaping up for a great tournament.
The Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles men's team ends the season with an 18-12 record, 13-7 in the conference. That is enough for a third-place finish, and a first-round home game on Tuesday at the Eblen Center in Cookeville. We are facing the No. 6 seed, Southeast Missouri State at 7 pm CT. The Golden Eagles should pull off a victory, but anything can happen outside of the regular season.
The Tech women's team should be at home, but lost a road game against Murray State in Murray, Kentucky on Thursday. We led by seven with about half a minute left in regulation, but poor charity-line shooting and some good late offense by Murray tied the game at the end of regulation. Tech led halfway through the overtime period, but MSU came up with a late shot and our answer came up short. The final count showed Murray with a 80-79 victory over our Tech Golden Eagles. If the Eagles would have won this one, a home game in Cookevile on Tuesday. Now, we're on the road as the No. 5 seed and we'll travel to Birmingham, Alabama to face No. 4 Samford. This game is almost certainly a toss-up, and we are hoping that Tech will pull it out and head to the semifinal round at the Gaylord Center in Nashville.
Keep up to date with the OVC Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament right here. We will record the winners and may have a brief story on the games after each round.
GO TECH!
The Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles men's team ends the season with an 18-12 record, 13-7 in the conference. That is enough for a third-place finish, and a first-round home game on Tuesday at the Eblen Center in Cookeville. We are facing the No. 6 seed, Southeast Missouri State at 7 pm CT. The Golden Eagles should pull off a victory, but anything can happen outside of the regular season.
The Tech women's team should be at home, but lost a road game against Murray State in Murray, Kentucky on Thursday. We led by seven with about half a minute left in regulation, but poor charity-line shooting and some good late offense by Murray tied the game at the end of regulation. Tech led halfway through the overtime period, but MSU came up with a late shot and our answer came up short. The final count showed Murray with a 80-79 victory over our Tech Golden Eagles. If the Eagles would have won this one, a home game in Cookevile on Tuesday. Now, we're on the road as the No. 5 seed and we'll travel to Birmingham, Alabama to face No. 4 Samford. This game is almost certainly a toss-up, and we are hoping that Tech will pull it out and head to the semifinal round at the Gaylord Center in Nashville.
Keep up to date with the OVC Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament right here. We will record the winners and may have a brief story on the games after each round.
GO TECH!
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