Senior Boopie Miller reached a season-high 28 points as SMU overpowered Murray State for a 102-91 win on Tuesday, Nov. 11.
Four of SMU’s starters scored at least 15 points in the high-scoring affair, including Jacksonville State transfer Jaron Pierre Jr., who scored 19 in his first-ever start as a Mustang. Senior guard B.J. Edwards netted 20, tying a career high, and forward Corey Washington paired 17 points with 11 rebounds for a double-double.
“[The starters] gave tremendous effort, they played together, they played great defense,” Head Coach Andy Enfield said. “Very proud of them tonight for how they started and throughout the game.”
SMU jumped out quickly, taking an 11-2 lead in the early minutes of the game thanks to two scores from Pierre Jr. and a dunk by Edwards. Though SMU held the lead for the remainder of the game, Racers guard Javon Jackson scored 15 points in the first half alone, cutting the SMU lead to as little as three points.
“[Jackson] is hard to guard,” Enfield said. “He got hot and made some mid-range shots and got to the foul line.”
Early on, SMU established itself in the paint, collecting key offensive rebounds to create additional scoring opportunities. The Mustangs secured a season-high 17 offensive rebounds and 42 total rebounds compared to Murray State’s eight and 31, respectively. Four of Washington’s team-leading 11 rebounds came on the offensive side of the court.
“He was all over the place again tonight,” Enfield said. “A couple of times I thought we had no chance of getting the ball and he comes flying out of nowhere and tips it or gets it. He just helps you win.”
At the end of the first half, SMU led Murray State 49-42. Despite the game nearing the scoring totals of the game against Texas A&M Corpus Christi in just the first half, Washington said the morale and communication amongst the defense never suffered.
“I think we handled it maturely,” Washington said. “We had guys that normally don’t really talk that much, have a voice and communicate. Just knowing what we were doing, that really helped us out a lot.”
The Mustangs looked as though they were going to run away with the win early in the second half, sprinting to a 65-47 advantage. Samet Yiğitoğlu, Pierre Jr. and Miller all contributed multiple scores during the 16-5 run.
However, down 71-55 with 11:41 remaining, Murray State scrapped its way back into the game, implementing a full-court press to pressure SMU into multiple fouls and turnovers. In just over a minute, the Racers scored 10 unanswered points.
Though Murray State continued to make good shots, SMU held on, shooting well from the free-throw line to hold off any possible comeback. The Mustangs hit 25 of their 30 free throws, with Miller, Pierre Jr. and Washington combining for 21 makes.
“We did a good job of taking what they gave us,” Washington said. “They were playing a little bit aggressive on defense and we were just drawing fouls left and right. We got up to the line and just knocked them down.”
With just seconds left on the clock, Miller heaved a long three-point attempt and connected, giving SMU its first 100-point game of the season. The 102-91 win improved SMU’s record to 3-0, an undefeated streak that SMU will attempt to extend on Saturday, Nov. 15 against Butler University. Last season, the Mustangs lost their 3-0 undefeated streak to Butler 81-70.
“I definitely think about it a lot,” Miller said. “We lost to [Butler] last year, so when they come in we’re definitely hungry and ready to get that win. I love this group and I think we can get better every single day.”
The Bulldogs also enter the weekend matchup winners of three straight. Tip-off will occur at 1 p.m. at Ford Stadium and will be broadcast on The CW.
