Murray State holds off Eastern Kentucky rally 86-79 (Jan 19, 2017)
MURRAY, Ky. (AP) Damarcus Croaker scored 23 points and Jonathan Stark added 21 with five assists as Murray State defeated in-state rival Eastern Kentucky 86-79 on Thursday night.
The Racers (11-9, 5-1 Ohio Valley Conference) scored 30 points off of 19 Eastern Kentucky turnovers, finishing with nine steals and five blocked shots.
Asante Gist led the Colonels (8-13, 1-5) with a career-high 26 points and Nick Mayo added 19. Eastern Kentucky trailed by as many as 13 in the first half, but briefly surged into a 59-58 lead after Gist hit a 3 and Mayo followed with a dunk at 9:43 of the second half.
Stark answered immediately for Murray State with a 3-pointer of his own, and the Racers edged away over the final stretch, building their lead back to 12 at one point. Terrell Miller Jr. scored back-to-back baskets during the final run, finishing with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
