Aces and Racers meet up at 6 p.m. inside Ford Center
 An Orange Out is set for Saturday evening in the Ford Center when the University of Evansville men’s basketball team welcomes Murray State for a 6 p.m. game. Fans are encouraged to wear their orange in what will be an excellent gameday atmosphere inside the Ford Center.
 Setting the Scene
– In what is always an exciting atmosphere, the Aces and Murray State meet for the 39th time overall and the 8th time since 2011
– MSU holds a 26-12 edge in the series and have won 12 out of 20 contests played in Evansville
– In the last game at the Ford Center, the Aces earned the most lopsided win either team has enjoyed in the series, taking a 78-46 win on Dec. 10, 2016
– Evansville looks to finish its non-conference slate on a high note before beginning Missouri Valley Conference play on Dec. 31 at Missouri State
Last Time Out
– A 5-game win streak came to an end on Monday evening when UE fell at Jacksonville State by a final of 85-59
– Sam Cunliffe was the lone player in double figures for UE, scoring 11 points
– DeAndre Williams, Artur Labinowicz, K.J. Riley, Evan Kuhlman, Jawaun Newton and Thomasi Gilgeous-Alexander registered six points apiece
– The Gamecocks shot 54.8% in the game and were 11-of-22 from outside
Up-Tempo Sophomore
– Sophomore Shamar Givance continues to lead the Missouri Valley Conference in assist-to-turnover ratio with a tally of 3.4
– He has 24 assists against just 7 turnovers in his 232 minutes on the floor
– In the triple overtime thriller against Morgan State, he set his career scoring mark with 15 points while going a perfect 2-2 from outside and 4-7 from the field
Pin Point Accuracy
– Entering the Jacksonville State game, John Hall converted 61.9% of his field goal attempts and 61.5% of his lone range tries over the prior three games while averaging 11.3 PPG over that span
– Over the first eight games this season, Hall stood at just 5.8 points, but has upped his season average to 6.9 points
– He was 4-for-6 from long distance against Miami Ohio – by comparison – he took a total of just six 3-point shots in his first season with the program
– Hall added 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting at Green Bay
– The Philadelphia native has been a starter in ten games this year and poured in his top effort of the season against IU Kokomo, posting 16 points while converting three triples
Scouting the Opponent
– Murray State comes into Saturday’s game with a 6-4 record and have won their last two games, defeating Middle Tennessee State and Kennesaw State
– Tevin Brown has gotten off to an excellent start for the Racers, posting team-highs in points (14.6 PPG) and steals (11)
– KJ Williams has a team-high 6.8 rebounds per game and is second in scoring with 12.2 PPG
– Sitting at 9.9 points is Jaiveon Eaves; Eaves played for the Purple Aces during the 2016-17 season and played in 24 games as a freshman
– The Racers are 23rd in the nation in rebounding margin, finishing with an advantage of 8.2 boards per game
