Trailing for much of the game and finding the going tough shooting the ball, Morehead State Men's Basketball dug deep into the rally bin and used a 17-4 run to end the game as the Eagles won their 20th game of the season, 68-60, at UT Martin Wednesday night.
MSU is now 20-8 overall and 12-3 in the OVC. MSU has posted back-to-back 20-win results for the first time since 2009-10 and 2010-11.
Morehead State's second-year big man Johni Broome put up gargantuan stat totals with 19 points, nine rebounds and a career-high 12 blocked shots. Broome's rejection total tied Ron Nicholson's program single-game record of 12 set back in 1972, tied the NCAA single-game high for the season (tied with Auburn's Walker Kessler) and was one short of the Ohio Valley Conference single-game mark of 13 set by Youngstown State's Ricky Tunstall in 1983.
The blocking effort also helped Broome inch ever closer to Nicholson's single-season MSU record of 115. Broome now has 113 on the year. It marked Broome's first-ever point-block double-double but still counted toward his season total of double-doubles which now stands at 20.
Besides Broome, junior guard Jaylen Sebree provided an energy boost with 13 points to tie his season high while also corralling six boards.
Trailing 56-51 with 5:26 remaining, the Eagles held the host Skyhawks to only one more field goal (with 20 seconds left) and two free throws as they rallied for the win. Jake Wolfe's duo of made free tosses with 3:08 left put the Eagles ahead 57-56, and they never relinquished the advantage.
MSU also hit nine free throws in the final three minutes to distance itself from UTM. The Eagles also edged UTM on rebounds 42-41.
While shooting an uncharacteristic 3-for-20 from three-point range (a season-low for made three-pointers), Morehead State made it count inside the arc where the Eagles made 21-of-37 field goals for 57 percent.
MSU trailed by as much as nine in the first half but finally trimmed its margin to only 34-30 after 20 minutes. UTM held an eight-point lead (52-44) with 9:25 to go in the contest. But, the Eagle defense allowed just two more successful field goals to the home team the rest of the night.
KK Curry led all players for UTM with a 24-point effort.
MSU returns home Saturday for Senior Day against Southeast Missouri. Game time is 4 p.m. ET. It will be the final regular season home game for Tray Hollowell, Jaylon Hall and Sebree.