Murray State Racers men's basketball

Venues

Murray State's first basketball venues were Wilson Hall (1926–27); Lovett Auditorium (1927–1937), which had a capacity of 1,500; and Carr Health Building (1937–1954), which had a capacity of 3,000. Racer Arena opened in 1954 and entertained Racer fans for 43 years. While its capacity was 5,500, over 6,000 people crowded the arena on numerous occasions. Racer Arena is now a volleyball-only facility, the largest in NCAA Division I.

Replacing Racer Arena is the CFSB Center, the current home of Murray State men's basketball. Constructed in June 1998 at a cost of $20 million, the facility is a state-of-the-art arena which can host other events besides basketball. The CFSB Center sits 8,602 and includes a $250,000 scoreboard and a 2,000 sq. ft. weight room. The first basketball game at the CFSB Center was against Southern Illinois on November 14, 1998, a 65-62 victory for the Racers in front of 7,633 spectators. It was formerly known as the Regional Special Events Center, or "RSEC", until the name was changed on September 17, 2010 after Community Financial Services Bank donated $3.3 million to Murray State, the largest donation in athletic history.

History

Murray State basketball has consistently been recognized as one of the best college basketball programs in the history of the sport. In 2005, Street & Smith's named the Racers the 52nd best program of all time. In their prestige system, ESPN ranked Murray State the 30th best programs from 1984 to 2008, breaking a tie with Villanova due to a higher winning percentage. The Racers are the highest "true" mid-major team in their rankings.

Cutchin era (1925–1941)

Carlisle Cutchin launched the Murray State basketball program in 1925. At the time, Murray State was a teacher's college and the nickname was the Thoroughbreds. In the 1935–36 season, Cutchin coached Murray State to its highest win percentage for a season at .920, when his Thoroughbreds finished with a record of 23-2. That season also included Murray State's best start, at 19-1. In his final season, he led the Thoroughbreds to the title game of the 1941 NAIA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, at which time they lost to the San Diego State Aztecs 36-34. Since he retired in 1941, he has maintained his position as the all-time winningest coach in Murray State basketball history, with a career record of 267-101.

Mountjoy era (1941–1942)

Rice Mountjoy was hired as the next men's basketball coach from Danville High School, where he was athletic director. In his only season with the Thoroughbreds, he coached the team to an 18-4 record. That season was marked by strong play from early jump shot proponent Joe Fulks, who transferred from Millsaps College. Mountjoy left after the 1941–42 season to coach Augusta Tilghman High School in nearby Paducah.

Miller era (1942–1948)

Former Murray State basketball player and then-freshman team coach John Miller replaced Mountjoy as head basketball coach. His best season was his first, when he led the team to a 21–5 record and finished fourth in the 1941 NAIA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

Hodges era (1948–1954)

From Southern Illinois, Harlan Hodges led the team to two NAIA Tournaments and two No. 16 AP rankings in his six seasons, with a 109–66 (.623) record. Bennie Purcell and Garrett Beshear were on the roster during those years and were later named NAIA All-Americans. Hodges left Murray in May 1954 for the University of Idaho in the Pacific Coast Conference, where success largely eluded him. He resigned after five seasons in 1959 to become the superintendent of schools in Anna, Illinois, then returned to Murray in 1964 to teach.

Luther era (1959–1974)

Cal Luther was a firebrand of a coach. The standing joke at the university was the over and under of Cal throwing off his jacket during a game due to a call by a ref, or from frustration with a player. The latter part of his tenure was marred by an OVC issue with testing and which tests the schools in the OVC used to qualify athletes. During the 73- 74 season several players were disqualified for using an illegal testing equivalency. This happened across the OVC, and Murray was not the only school to lose student athletes. Most of the Disqualified athletes were allowed to transfer by the NCAA to other schools, but OVC schools lost the services of those athletes who had not actually taken the SAT, but had taken the ACT.

Greene era (1978–1985)

Ron Greene returned to his alma mater fresh off earning the AP Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year award at Mississippi State in 1978.

After managing only four wins in his first season as coach at Murray, Greene led the Racers to 23 wins the following year and an appearance in the National Invitation Tournament. The Racers knocked off Jacksonville and Alabama before losing to Illinois 65-63 in the quarterfinals, all on the road. Greene's Racers would win three Ohio Valley Conference regular-season titles and reach the NIT twice more under his guidance.

A highlight of the 1981–82 season came when Murray State traveled to South Bend, Indiana, to play against Notre Dame. Murray State defeated a Notre Dame team coached by Digger Phelps 56-54.

His overall record at Murray State was 119-78. While at the Racer helm, Greene coached Racer greats Gary Hooker and Lamont Sleets.

Newton era (1985–1991)

In Steve Newton's second season, in 1987–88, the team finished with a 13-15 record. This marked the last time the Racers had a losing season; only Arizona, Kansas, and Syracuse hold longer streaks.

In addition to Murray's win in 1988, two years later the No. 16 seed Racers took No. 1 seed Michigan State into overtime before falling 75-71. The loss in 1990 was the closest a 16 seeded team had ever come to knocking off a No. 1 seeded team in the tournament. While a 16 seeded Princeton team and a 16 seeded East Tennessee State team both fell by just 1 point during regulation in the 1989 tournament, the 1990 Murray State team was the only 16 seed ever to take a game into overtime. In 1997, the No. 15 seed Racers nearly shocked the No. 2 seed Duke Blue Devils in a 71-68 loss.

In 1988, Jeff Martin became the first basketball player in Murray State, and OVC, history to be invited to the Olympic trials for the US Basketball Team. This was the last year that professionals were not allowed on the team. Martin did not make the team but impressed many with his performance.

The best-known player in the Newton era is Popeye Jones. While at Murray State, Jones scored 2,057 points which still ranks fourth all time for the Racers. He is also Murray State's all-time leader in rebounds with 1,374, and led the nation in that category in the 1990–91 season. Jones is the only player in MSU history to record more than 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. Jones helped lead the Racers to OVC championships in 1991 and 1992. He went on to have a successful career in the NBA after being drafted in the second round by the Houston Rockets in the 1992 NBA Draft.

Gottfried era (1995–1998)

Mark Gottfried was hired as head basketball coach after serving seven seasons as an assistant coach under Jim Harrick at UCLA. Gottfried was hired shortly after he finished the 1995 season with the Bruins, in which he helped lead the Bruins to a NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship. Mark Gottfried was also the nephew of ESPN analyst and former Murray State football coach Mike Gottfried.

In Gottfried's first season, the Racers returned four starters, including Marcus Brown, from the Racer team that nearly upset North Carolina in the 1995 NCAA Tournament, and the team was picked to finished first in the OVC. The Racers won the Ohio Valley Conference regular season championship in 1996 for the third straight season; however, the Racers were defeated in the OVC tournament. In the final game of the tournament, Murray State's Vincent Rainey was charged with a foul with twenty seconds left on the clock in a tie game against the rival Austin Peay Governors. APSU's Reggie Crenshaw made two free throws and the Racers lost the game 68-70. As a result of the loss, the Racers did not reach the 1996 NCAA Tournament. The Racers lost to the Missouri Tigers in the opening round of the 1996 National Invitational Tournament, and finished the season 19-10. Marcus Brown finished his college playing career at the close of the 1996 season with 2,236 career points, which is third best in Murray State history.

With a November 23, 1996, victory over the Belmont Bruins, the Racers began a 47-game home winning streak that would last into the 1999–2000 season. The Racers won the 1997 OVC Tournament with an overtime win over Austin Peay and earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

ESPN's College Basketball Encyclopedia names the Racers 1997–98 season as having the best team in school history. OVC player of the year De'Teri Mayes led the 1997–98 team to 23 victories by double digit margins. Isaac Spencer was a freshman on the team. Spencer would go on to score 2,248 points over four seasons, which places him second place all time for the Racers. The Racers won both the OVC regular season and OVC tournament again in 1998; however, Murray State fell to number eight seed Rhode Island in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Racers finished the season a number 25 ranking in the final AP Poll. Mark Gottfried won three Ohio Valley Conference Championships in each of his three seasons, the only OVC coach to accomplish such a mark.

Gottfried was hired by Alabama to be head basketball coach in March 1998. He had been a starting player for the Crimson Tide for three seasons between 1985 and 1987.

Anderson era (1998–2003)

Tevester Anderson was promoted to head coach of the Racers in March, 1998 after Mark Gottfried left Murray State to take the head coach position at the University of Alabama. Anderson, the first African American to serve as head coach of the Murray State men's basketball team, had previously served as an assistant coach under Gottfried during the previous three seasons. At age 61, Anderson was also the oldest rookie head coach in NCAA Division I basketball. In his first year as coach of the Racers, Anderson led the team to a 27-6 record, an Ohio Valley Conference championship, and an NCAA Tournament appearance. Anderson was named the OVC's Co-Coach of the Year and was named NABC District 7 Coach of the Year following the 1998–99 season.

In Anderson's second year as head coach, the Racers finished the 1999–2000 season with a 23-9 record. The record was good enough to capture a share of the OVC regular season championship, but the Racer's failed to win the OVC Tournament and earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Murray State home court winning streak, the longest in the nation, also came to an end in 2000 with a January 15 loss to Southeast Missouri State University.

Over the next three years under Anderson, the success of the Racer basketball program steadily declined, culminating in a low point during the 2002–03 season. The Racers finished the 2002–03 season with a 17-12 record, which was fourth-place in the OVC standings. The fourth-place finish was the worst finish in the OVC standings since the 1986–87 season. Amid rumors that Anderson would relinquish his coaching duties at Murray State under pressure from university officials, he resigned from the head coach position in March 2003. Anderson was named as the new head coach at Jackson State University in April 2003.

Cronin era (2003–2006)

Previously an assistant at Cincinnati (1997–2001) under Bob Huggins and at Louisville (2001–03) under Rick Pitino, Mick Cronin was introduced as the new head coach of the Racers on April 5, 2003. When he accepted the position, Cronin became the fourth youngest head coach in NCAA Division-I basketball. In Cronin's first season as head coach, the Racers won the OVC tournament and advanced to the first round of the NCAA Tournament where the Racers fell to No. 5 seeded Illinois. The success of the 2003–04 season was also tainted by arrests and suspensions. Just before the start of the 2004 NCAA Tournament, juniors Adam Chiles and Kelvin Brown were arrested on drug charges. Chiles was charged with hindering prosecution and possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, and Brown was charged with theft from an alleged gas drive-off, possession of marijuana, and his second offense of possession of drug paraphernalia. Both were arrested following a 911 hangup call from their apartment in which Chiles was found outside and Brown was found hiding in a closet. Chiles was cleared to play in the tournament, but Brown was suspended indefinitely and later dismissed from the team in April.

Problems continued for the Racers in the 2004–05 season. The team's only returning starter, Adam Chiles, was dismissed from the team in November following his second arrest of 2004. Chiles was stopped by Kentucky State Police while driving on Western Kentucky Parkway near Leitchfield, Kentucky. Chiles was charged with driving under the influence, possession of marijuana, possession of an open alcoholic beverage container, and speeding. Chiles had averaged 10.1 points and 3.9 assists for the Racers in the previous season. The Racers went on to finish the 2004–05 season with a record of 20-10 and a first round loss in the OVC tournament.

In the 2006 tournament, junior guard Trey Pearson missed a critical 3-point shot in the final seconds of the first-round game against No. 3 seeded defending champion North Carolina. UNC was fouled on the rebound and went to the line to sink the game clinching shots to defeat the No. 14 seeded Racers 69-65. After the 2006 NCAA Tournament Cronin took the reins of the Cincinnati Bearcats,his hometown team and alma mater.

Kennedy era (2006–2011)

The Racers won their first-round game in the 2010 NCAA tournament in dramatic fashion, defeating fourth-seeded Vanderbilt 66-65 on a buzzer-beating jump shot by senior Danero Thomas. This was the first time that any Ohio Valley Conference team had advanced to the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament since Middle Tennessee advanced in 1989. The Racers followed up a regular season conference championship for the second year in a row in 2011. The Racers were eliminated from the OVC tournament in 2011; however, they earned a number six seed in the National Invitational Tournament where the Racers suffered a first round loss to Missouri State University. In May 2011, Billy Kennedy announced that he was leaving Murray State to accept the head coach position at Texas A&M University.

Prohm era (2011–2015)

Steve Prohm was introduced as the 15th head coach on May 23, 2011. Prohm was promoted to the head coach position after serving as an assistant coach under Billy Kennedy for the previous five seasons. The Racers won the 2011 Great Alaska Shootout early in the 2011–12 season and went on a 23-game winning streak to start the season. The team's 23-0 start under Prohm was the best start to a season in team history. The 23-0 start beat the previous best start record of 16-0 set by the 1935–36 men's basketball team under Carlisle Cutchin. The 23-0 start was the third-best start in NCAA Division I history for a first-year head coach, and it set OVC records for most wins to start a season and overall winning streak during a season

The 10th win of the 2011–12 season was a victory over the then No. 21-ranked Memphis Tigers. This was Murray State's first win over a ranked team since defeating Vanderbilt in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. It was also Murray State's first win over a ranked team during the regular season since the Racers defeated No. 12 Arkansas in 1997. Following the victory over Memphis, the Racers entered the national polls at No. 24 on the AP Top 25 Poll on December 12, 2011. This marked the first time an OVC basketball team had been ranked in the major national polls since the Racers were last ranked at No. 25 in the final poll of the 1998 season. The No. 24 ranking also marked the team's highest ranking since February 1971, when the Racers were 17th. The No. 24-ranked Racers defeated the Lipscomb Bisons in the 11th game of the season. The victory was the first win for Murray State as a ranked team since a ranked Racer team defeated Tennessee Tech 72-69 on February 2, 1971. On January 2, 2012, Murray State moved into the No. 1 spot in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll. The Racers became the first OVC team to ever achieve the No. 1 ranking in the Mid-Major Top 25 Poll. Following Murray State's 16th win of the season, a January 7, 2012, victory over conference-rival Austin Peay, the Racers moved up to No. 14 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll and No. 15 in the AP Poll. Their 17th win came against Jacksonville State at the CFSB center to put the Racers to 17-0, and their best start in school history. Their 18th win against Tennessee Tech, 82-74 on January 14, 2012, kept Murray one of only three Division I schools with an unbeaten season as of that date. The January 9 AP ranking was the highest ranking in the history of the Murray State men's basketball program. The No. 15 ranking was also the highest ranking for an OVC team since the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers were ranked No. 7 on March 16, 1971.

On February 9, 2012, Murray State hosted OVC-rival Tennessee State University as the No. 9 team in the nation and the lone unbeaten in Division I basketball. Murray State lost 72-68. Two days later, Murray State answered with a definitive win at home against rival Austin Peay 82-63, bringing its record to 24-1. This win was quickly followed by a win on the road at SEMO, 75-66, to clinch the Racers third consecutive Ohio Valley Conference regular-season championship.

On February 18, Murray State hosted St. Mary's College in a much-anticipated Bracketbuster event, and the last home game of the season. The game was not only a sellout, but the largest ever for attendance at the CFSB center: 8,825. This marked the first time two ranked teams played at the CFSB Center (Murray State No. 16 AP, No. 14 USA Today/ESPN; St. Mary's No. 21 AP, No. 16 USA Today/ESPN) and the first time a ranked Murray State team played another ranked team. The game also featured a national TV audience on ESPN with legendary announcers Dave O'Brien and Dick Vitale calling the action. Murray State never trailed in the game and defeated St. Mary's 65-51, improving its record to 26-1. As the historic 2011–12 season came to a close, the Murray State men's basketball program was the recipient of several high-profile awards. Coach Steve Prohm was named the Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year, which marked the third-consecutive year the award was presented to a Murray State head coach. Prohm also was recognized as the District-IV Coach of the Year by the United States Basketball Writers Association and District 19 Coach of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Prohm also received two national coach of the year awards: the Basketball Times Coach of the Year Award and the Joe B. Hall National Coach of the Year Award. Junior point guard Isaiah Canaan was named Second Team All-America by the Associated Press, as well as selected to the John R. Wooden All-American team, Lute Olson All-America team, NABC All-America Third Team, and Sporting News All-America First Team. Canaan was a finalist for the John R. Wooden Award, Bob Cousy Award, Oscar Robertson Trophy, Lou Henson Award and to the Naismith College Player of the Year Midseason watch list.

On June 8, 2015, Prohm was announced as the new head coach at Iowa State. The Iowa State job had become open when Fred Hoiberg left to become head coach of the Chicago Bulls.

Season by season results

Starting from the 1987–88 season, the Racers have recorded a winning season for 29 straight years. They have won 20 or more games in a season 28 times and twice have won 30 or more. For the first time in school history, the 2014–15 Racers went undefeated (16-0) in the OVC regular season.

KIAC – Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (now known as River States Conference)
SIAA – Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association
NAIB – National Association for Intercollegiate Basketball
NAIA – National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (Was the NAIB until 1952 when they picked up other sports)
NIT – National Invitation Tournament
NCAA – National Collegiate Athletic Association
CIT – CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament

Rankings

The Racers have been nationally ranked in seven seasons in either the Associated Press (AP) Poll or the ESPN-USA Today (Coaches) Poll. They were first ranked during the 1950–51 season coached by Harlan Hodges. The Racers received their highest ranking, under coach Steve Prohm, during the 2011–12 season, ranking 9th in the AP Poll and 7th in the Coaches Poll.

Rivalries

Murray State's historic basketball rivalry is with nearby Western Kentucky. The two teams became archrivals during their time together in the Ohio Valley Conference. Although the schools no longer share their conference affiliation (Western Kentucky joined the Sun Belt Conference in 1982 and Conference USA in 2014), the two schools keep the series alive every few years. The two teams have met in basketball 147 times. The Racers' primary in-conference OVC rivalry is now with Austin Peay State University, a school closer geographically than WKU. In February 2009, ESPN The Magazine highlighted the Austin Peay-Murray State rivalry.

Coaches

The Racers have had 15 different head coaches in their history. Carlisle Cutchin has the most wins in school history with 267. Steve Newton has won the most OVC Regular Season titles with four & the most OVC Tournament titles with three. There have been 10 different coaches to win the OVC Coach Of The Year award for a combined 16 times.

All-Americans

The Racers have had 13 All-Americans; the first in 1938 and the last in 2012.

NBA draftees

The Racers have had eight players selected in the NBA draft.

Retired numbers

The Racers have retired nine numbers, the first in 1952 and the last in 2010.

Scoring leaders

The Racers have had six players score over 2,000 points and 41 players score over 1,000 points during their careers. Marcus Brown holds the record for the most points in a single game with 45 against Washington on December 16, 1995. Jeff Martin holds the record for the most points in a single season with 806 during the 1987–88 season.

NCAA Tournament

The Racers made their 15th NCAA tournament appearance in 2012. They received their highest ranking in the tournament in 2012 with a 6th seed. They have an overall 3–15 record in tournament games. Popeye Jones holds the single game scoring record with 37 points against Michigan State in 1990.

National Invitation Tournament

In eight National Invitation Tournament (NIT) appearances, the Racers are 4–8 overall in tournament games.

CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament

The Racers appeared in the 2014 CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). They posted a 5–0 record to be 2014 CIT champions.

NAIA Tournament

The Racers appeared in the NAIA Tournament seven times. Their combined record is 16–8.