1987–88 Murray State Racers men's basketball team

American college basketball season

1987–88 Murray State Racers men's basketball
Ohio Valley Regular season champions Ohio Valley tournament champions
NCAA tournament, Second round
Conference	Ohio Valley Conference
Record	22–9 (13–1 OVC)
Head coach	Steve Newton (3rd season)
Home arena	Racer Arena
Seasons← 1986–87 1988–89 →

1987–88 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Murray State †	13	–	1	.929	22	–	9	.710
Middle Tennessee	11	–	3	.786	23	–	11	.676
Austin Peay	10	–	4	.714	17	–	13	.567
Eastern Kentucky	10	–	4	.714	18	–	11	.621
Tennessee Tech	5	–	9	.357	12	–	16	.429
Tennessee State	4	–	10	.286	11	–	17	.393
Youngstown State	2	–	12	.143	7	–	21	.250
Morehead State	1	–	13	.071	5	–	22	.185

† 1988 Ohio Valley Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

The 1987–88 Murray State Racers men's basketball team represented Murray State University during the 1987–88 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 22–9, 13–1 in OVC play to win the OVC regular season championship. They defeated Austin Peay to win the OVC tournament to advance to the NCAA tournament. As No. 14 seed in the Southeast region, the Racers defeated No. 3 seed NC State, 78–75, in the opening round before losing to eventual National champion Kansas, 61–58, in the round of 32.

Roster

1987–88 Murray State Racers men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	15	Jeff Martin	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Jr	Cross County HS	Cherry Valley, Arkansas
G	23	Don Mann	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	—	Jr

Head coach

Steve Newton (Indiana State)

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

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

Injured
Current redshirt

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank	Opponent	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
Nov 27, 1987*		William Penn	W 97–49	1–0	Racer Arena (3,500) Murray, Kentucky
Nov 30, 1987*		Southern Illinois	L 70–77	1–1	Racer Arena (3,570) Murray, Kentucky
Dec 2, 1987*		Christian Brothers	W 82–69	2–1	Racer Arena (1,550) Murray, Kentucky
Dec 5, 1987*		at Evansville	L 70–76	2–2	Roberts Stadium Evansville, Indiana
Dec 7, 1987*		Western Illinois	W 74–58	3–2	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Dec 11, 1987*		vs. Utah State The Longhorn Classic	L 57–74	3–3	Frank Erwin Center Austin, Texas
Dec 12, 1987*		vs. Pan American The Longhorn Classic	L 57–60	3–4	Frank Erwin Center Austin, Texas
Dec 18, 1987*		vs. Eastern Washington Bayou Classic	W 84–57	4–4	Cajundome Lafayette, Louisiana
Dec 19, 1987*		at Southwestern Louisiana Bayou Classic	L 62–64	4–5	Cajundome Lafayette, Louisiana
Jan 2, 1988*		Bethel College	W 96–60	5–5	Racer Arena (1,250) Murray, Kentucky
Jan 5, 1988*		at Memphis State	L 70–76	5–6	Mid-South Coliseum (11,200) Memphis, Tennessee
Jan 9, 1988		Tennessee State	W 99–84	6–6 (1–0)	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Jan 12, 1988*		Western Kentucky	L 49–50	6–7	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Jan 16, 1988		Eastern Kentucky	W 95–84	7–7 (2–0)	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Jan 18, 1988		Morehead State	W 85–74	8–7 (3–0)	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Jan 23, 1988		at Middle Tennessee	W 79–67	9–7 (4–0)	Murphy Center Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Jan 25, 1988		at Tennessee Tech	W 67–64	10–7 (5–0)	Eblen Center Cookeville, Tennessee
Jan 30, 1988		at Youngstown State	W 87–62	11–7 (6–0)	Beeghly Center Youngstown, Ohio
Feb 6, 1988		Austin Peay	L 71–74	11–8 (6–1)	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Feb 8, 1988		at Austin Peay	W 83–70	12–8 (7–1)	Dunn Center Clarksville, Tennessee
Feb 13, 1988		at Tennessee State	W 78–70	13–8 (8–1)	Gentry Complex Nashville, Tennessee
Feb 15, 1988		Youngstown State	W 71–64	14–8 (9–1)	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Feb 20, 1988		at Morehead State	W 77–75	15–8 (10–1)	Ellis Johnson Arena Morehead, Kentucky
Feb 22, 1988		at Eastern Kentucky	W 79–78	16–8 (11–1)	McBrayer Arena Richmond, Kentucky
Feb 27, 1988		Tennessee Tech	W 80–75	17–8 (12–1)	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Feb 29, 1988		Middle Tennessee	W 82–66	18–8 (13–1)	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Mar 7, 1988*		at Western Illinois Quarterfinals	W 78–68	19–8	Western Hall Macomb, Illinois
Ohio Valley Conference tournament
Mar 8, 1988*	(1)	(4) Eastern Kentucky Semifinals	W 76–60	20–8	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
Mar 9, 1988*	(1)	(3) Austin Peay Championship game	W 73–70	21–8	Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky
NCAA tournament
Mar 18, 1988*	(14 MW)	vs. (3 MW) No. 14 NC State First round	W 78–75	22–8	Bob Devaney Sports Center Lincoln, Nebraska
Mar 20, 1988*	(14 MW)	vs. (6 MW) Kansas Second round	L 58–61	22–9	Bob Devaney Sports Center Lincoln, Nebraska
*Non-conference game. Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. SE=Southeast. All times are in Central Time.

Awards and honors

Jeff Martin – OVC Player of the Year
Steve Newton – OVC Coach of the Year

References

sports-reference.com 1987-88 Ohio Valley Conference Season Summary
"Murray State Beats Odds, N.C. State". Chicago Tribune. March 19, 1988. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
"Kansas Fights Off Pesky Murray State". Chicago Tribune. March 21, 1988. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
"1987-88 Murray State Racers Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
"Before 1988 title, Danny Manning and the Miracles were nearly derailed at Devaney Center". Omaha World-Herald. March 21, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
"2019-20 MURRAY STATE MEN'S BASKETBALL RECORD BOOK". Murray State University Athletics. Retrieved February 26, 2022.

v t e Murray State Racers men's basketball
Venues	Lovett Auditorium (1925–1950) Carr Health Building (1950–1954) Racer Arena (1954–1998) CFSB Center (1998–present)
People	Head coaches NBA players Statistical leaders
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