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Racers top Tennessee Tech, remain unbeaten

Jan 15, 2012 - 4:26 AM Murray, KY (Sports Network) - Donte Poole posted a career-high 28 points with eight rebounds as No. 15 Murray State survived a challenge from Tennessee Tech, but posted an 82-74 victory.

Isaiah Canaan scored 24 points and Jewuan Long added 11 for the Racers (18-0, 6-0 OVC), who remained one of the three unbeatens along with Syracuse and Baylor.

I give a lot of credit to our guys' resiliency," Murray State head coach Steve Prohm said. "We're having to play a lot of different ways and we're just trying to figure things out, and they're doing things on the fly and making adjustments and I couldn't be prouder of how it's turned out."

Kevin Murphy and Jud Dillard each tallied 19 points for the Golden Eagles (11-7, 3-2), whose three-game win streak came to an end. Dillard pulled down a game-best 12 boards in a losing cause.

Tennessee Tech never led in the contest, but managed to forge a 58-58 deadlock with 9:29 remaining when Dillard hit 1-of-2 from the line.

But Poole drained a three over a minute later, Dillard came up with two from the line and Poole also added a pair from the charity stripe to keep it a three-point margin.

Canaan hit from long distance with 5:12 on the clock for a 65-60 game, and Long also connected from beyond the arc to extend the Racers' edge to 70-65 with 3:34 showing.

The Golden Eagles never recovered, and Murray State connected on 9-of-10 free throws in the final two-plus minutes to seal it.

"I'm excited about our team, and I hope the people back home will get excited about our team," said TTU head coach Steve Payne. "I challenge the people of Cookeville and Tennessee Tech to have this kind of atmosphere. If we had this kind of atmosphere, we'd never lose a game."

MSU broke open a tight one early with a 21-4 bulge to create a 26-9 lead just shy of the midway point in the first half. Poole and Canaan made a pair of treys each and Zay Jackson added one of his own during the surge.

Snapped to attention, TTU used the remaining time to crawl back into the game, closing within 39-36 at the break when Zach Bailey hit a jumper.

Game Notes

Tennessee Tech racked up a 47-39 edge on the glass in defeat...Jackson ended with nine points and five rebounds...Murray State committed 11 turnovers but forced the visitors to turn the ball over 17 times.