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Team	1	2	F
More	34	31	65
SEMO	25	34	59

Game Recap: Men’s Basketball | 2/11/2023 7:50:00 PM

Thelwell, Gross and Maughmer Lead Morehead State Past SEMO 65-59

BOX SCORE

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. —Drew Thelwell, Alex Gross and Branden Maughmer combined to score 49 of Morehead State’s 65 total points as the Men’s Basketball Eagles knocked off the Southeast Missouri Redhawks 65-59 on the road Saturday.

With the win and the SEMO loss, MSU now grabs a two-game lead in the Ohio Valley Conference standings with fur games to play before the tournament. MSU held SEMO to its lowest scoring output on its 2022-23 season.

The Eagles (17-10, 10-4 OVC) had three players score in double figures, led by Thelwell, who had a career-high 24 points after leading scorer Mark Freeman went out early. Gross tacked on a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds and Maughmer chipped in as well with 12 points and two steals off the bench.

Morehead State out-rebounded the Redhawks 36-27 in Saturday’s game, paced by Gross’ 10 boards. The Eagles also grabbed 10 offensive rebounds and scored 10 second chance points.

Morehead State’s defense held SEMO to only 38 percent shooting from the field, including just 28 percent from beyond the arc. SEMO scored 17 points below its season average. The Redhawks did not have much luck cleaning up their misses on the offensive glass either, as they finished with just five offensive rebounds while Morehead State cleared 26 defensive rebounds.

How It Happened
After jumping out to a 21-19 advantage, Morehead State went on an 11-0 run with 5:02 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Gross, to increase its lead to 32-19. The Eagles then lost some of that lead, but still entered halftime with a 34-25 advantage. Morehead State did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 20 of its 34 points close to the basket.

Morehead State kept its lead intact before going on a 7-0 run to grow the lead to 59-45 with 6:15 to go in the contest. The Redhawks narrowed the margin down to five on a couple of occasions but missed some buckets late before MSU didn’t allow second chance opportunities. Morehead State capitalized on six Southeast Missouri State turnovers in the period, collecting 10 points off those turnovers.

Game Notes
» Alex Gross notched a double-double for the Eagles with 13 points and 10 rebounds, his fourth double-double this year.
» The Eagles held the Redhawks to only 38.8 percent shooting from the field.
» Morehead State never trailed in the second half on its way to victory.
» Thelwell, Gross and Maughmer combined to account for 75 percent of the Eagles’ points.
» Morehead State had a 36-27 edge on the boards in the win.

Up Next
The Eagles host Tennessee State for an ESPNU OVC battle on Thursday. Tip time at Johnson Arena is 9 p.m. ET.

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