1989–90 Murray State Racers men's basketball team

The 1989–90 Murray State Racers men's basketball team represented Murray State University during the 1989–90 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Racers, led by head coach Steve Newton, played their home games at Racer Arena in Murray, Kentucky as members of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 21–9, 10–2 in OVC play to win the OVC regular season championship. They defeated Eastern Kentucky to win the OVC tournament to advance to the NCAA tournament. As No. 16 seed in the Southeast region, the Racers took No. 1 seed Michigan State to overtime before losing 75–71.

1989–90 Murray State Racers men's basketball
Ohio Valley Regular season champions
Ohio Valley tournament champions
ConferenceOhio Valley Conference
Record21–9 (10–2 OVC)
Head coach
Home arenaRacer Arena
Seasons
1989–90 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Murray State 10 2   .833 21 9   .700
Tennessee Tech 9 3   .750 19 9   .679
Morehead State 7 5   .583 16 13   .552
Eastern Kentucky 7 5   .583 13 17   .433
Middle Tennessee 5 7   .417 12 15   .444
Tennessee State 2 10   .167 7 20   .259
Austin Peay 2 10   .167 10 19   .345
1990 OVC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

Roster

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1989–90 Murray State Racers men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 54 Popeye Jones 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 250 lb (113 kg) So Dresden HS Dresden, TN
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

[2]

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
Nov 29, 1989*
at Western Kentucky W 66–64  1–0
E.A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Dec 2, 1989*
at Saint Louis L 68–78  1–1
Kiel Auditorium 
St. Louis, Missouri
Dec 4, 1989*
at Eastern Illinois L 50–55  1–2
Lantz Arena 
Charleston, Illinois
Dec 9, 1989*
Southern Illinois L 108–114 3OT 1–3
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Dec 11, 1989*
Georgia Southern L 69–71  1–4
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Dec 16, 1989*
at Evansville L 69–93  1–5
Roberts Stadium 
Evansville, Indiana
Dec 18, 1989*
Southern California College W 71–68  2–5
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Dec 29, 1989*
vs. Texas-San Antonio
Lamar Tournament
W 107–101 OT 3–5
Montagne Center 
Beaumont, Texas
Dec 30, 1989*
at Lamar
Lamar Tournament
W 88–81  4–5
Montagne Center 
Beaumont, Texas
Jan 3, 1990*
Saint Louis L 60–76  4–6
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Jan 5, 1990*
vs. Alcorn State
McDonnell Classic
W 72–60  5–6
Clemente Center 
Melbourne, Florida
Jan 6, 1990*
vs. Florida Tech
McDonnell Classic
W 72–62  6–6
Clemente Center 
Melbourne, Florida
Jan 9, 1990*
Arkansas State W 64–62  7–6
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Jan 13, 1990
Morehead State W 71–55  8–6
(1–0)
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Jan 15, 1990
Eastern Kentucky W 58–45  9–6
(2–0)
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Jan 20, 1990
at Middle Tennessee State W 80–71  10–6
(3–0)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Jan 22, 1990
at Tennessee Tech W 81–75  11–6
(4–0)
Eblen Center 
Cookeville, Tennessee
Jan 27, 1990*
at Nicholls State W 75–56  12–6
Stopher Gymnasium 
Thibodaux, Louisiana
Jan 29, 1990
at Tennessee State W 80–67  13–6
(5–0)
Gentry Center 
Nashville, Tennessee
Feb 3, 1990
at Austin Peay W 58–55  14–6
(6–0)
Dunn Center 
Clarksville, Tennessee
Feb 5, 1990
Austin Peay W 66–58  15–6
(7–0)
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Feb 10, 1990
Tennessee State W 90–89  16–6
(8–0)
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Feb 12, 1990*
at Georgia Southern W 82–79  17–6
Hanner Fieldhouse 
Statesboro, Georgia
Feb 17, 1990
Tennessee Tech W 71–63  18–6
(9–0)
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Feb 19, 1990
Middle Tennessee State L 76–81  18–7
(9–1)
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Feb 24, 1990
at Eastern Kentucky W 74–69  19–7
(10–1)
McBrayer Arena 
Richmond, Kentucky
Feb 26, 1990
at Morehead State L 79–81  19–8
(10–2)
Ellis Johnson Arena 
Morehead, Kentucky
Ohio Valley Conference tournament
Mar 4, 1990*
(1) (7) Austin Peay
Semifinal
W 68–67  20–8
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Mar 5, 1990*
(1) (4) Eastern Kentucky
Championship
W 63–57  21–8
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
NCAA tournament
Mar 15, 1990*
(16 SE) vs. (1 SE) No. 3 Michigan State
First Round
L 71–75 OT 21–9
Thompson-Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
SE=Southeast.
All times are in Central Time.

[3]

Awards and honors

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References

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  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1989-90 Ohio Valley Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ "1989-90 Murray State Racers Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  3. ^ "2019-20 MURRAY STATE MEN'S BASKETBALL RECORD BOOK". Murray State University Athletics. Retrieved May 8, 2020.