Southeast Missouri State Redhawks vs. Murray State Racers Prediction & Game Preview - 3/4/2022

Time: 8 p.m. ET

Venue: First Center, Evansville, IN

Where to watch: ESPNU

DraftKings: NL

BetMGM: NL

Caesars: NL

Southeast Missouri State: 14-17 (8-9 Ohio Valley)

No. 22 Murray State: 28-2 (18-0 Ohio Valley)

It’s only fitting that Ja Morant is having his breakout season, because his alma mater is doing things that are reminiscent of his time there.

 

The Murray State Racers are in the Ohio Valley Conference semifinals and are two wins from carrying a 30-win season into the NCAA Tournament. To get there, the Racers need to navigate through the roads against the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks in what is a rematch from last Saturday.

 

And if that game is any indication as to what we can expect on Friday, this could be a daunting test for Murray State, surprising enough. The Racers rallied from a first-half deficit, and thanks to nine straight points from Justice Hill in the final three minutes, Murray State survived against SEMO 70-68.

 

KJ Williams had 23 points on 10 of 21 shooting, and Murray State finished the regular season a perfect 18-0 in conference play. Considering their only two losses this season were against a very good Auburn team and East Tennessee State, I’d say that’s a fair job well done.

 

We haven’t talked about Murray State as much this season, but they always tend to be a program that makes things happen come March. Not sure where they fall in this category when tournament time approaches. We’ve seen 30-win teams stay between 6-11 seeds, but considering this is a top-25 team we’re talking about, and ranked as high as 19 at one point, you have to think a strong end to the season can result in, possibly, a No. 4 seed, maybe?

 

But just because there’s an 8-9 conference record on their marker, there’s no reason we should discount Southeast Missouri State in this one. Perhaps things will change with Murray State as the designated home team, but the Redbirds shot 50 percent from the floor and hung around by making shots. The lack of free throws didn’t help the cause, going 6 of 10, but if someone like Phillip Russell made more than 4 of 12 from the floor, things might have ended on a different note.

 

It's also a team that turned the ball over quite more than it likely anticipated, losing the turnover battle 17-11 in this game. A few less of those and the game could’ve swung a great deal. But I can’t imagine this taking shape again, unfortunately.

At the end of the day, Murray State is battle tested from years of tournament pedigree and that can weigh heavily on the underdog. The scary bout of facing a team that’s been there and done that before can be a daunting task, and considering the talent Murray State has, I think this rematch will go far along the wayside and favors the ranked team despite a valiant effort from the underdog. Murray State by 12

SEMO is 27-28 ATS against conference opponents.

SEMO is 23-26 ATS off a loss the past three seasons.

PG: Phillip Russell

SG: Eric Reed Jr.

SF: Nygal Russell

PF: Dylan Branson

C: Manny Patterson

PG: Justice Hill

SG: Carter Collins

SF: Tevin Brown

PF: D.J. Burns

C: K.J. Williams

Points: Eric Reed Jr. -- 16.0

Rebounds: Nygal Russell -- 6.4

Assists: Phillip Russell -- 3.1

Points: K.J. Williams -- 18.2

Rebounds: K.J. Williams -- 8.5

Assists: Justice Hill -- 5.1