Morehead State Eagles men's basketball

College basketball team

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Morehead State Eagles

2024–25 Morehead State Eagles men's basketball team

University

Morehead State University

All-time record

1275-1182 (.519)

Head coach

Jonathan Mattox (1st season)

Conference

Ohio Valley

Location

Morehead, Kentucky

Arena

Ellis Johnson Arena
(capacity: 6,500)

Nickname

Eagles

Colors

Blue and gold

NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen

1956, 1961

NCAA tournament round of 32

2011

NCAA tournament appearances

1956, 1957, 1961, 1983, 1984, 2009, 2011, 2021, 2024

Conference tournament champions

1983, 1984, 2009, 2011, 2021, 2024

Conference regular season champions

1956, 1957, 1961, 1963, 1969, 1972, 1974, 1984, 2003, 2023, 2024

The Morehead State Eagles are an NCAA Division I men's basketball team that represents Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky, United States. The school is a charter member of the Ohio Valley Conference and has competed in the OVC since its inception in 1948.

Program summary

The Eagles are the lone charter member of the OVC that still currently competes in the conference. Morehead State has made nine NCAA Tournament appearances, with the most recent coming during the 2023–24 season. MSU has won a total of 17 OVC Championship, with 11 regular season titles and six OVC Tournament championships. MSU's 17 OVC championships are the most won by any current OVC member, while the Eagles' six OVC Tournament titles is also tops amongst the current set of OVC squads. The most recent OVC title came during the 2023–24 season, when the Eagles collected a share of the regular season crown and won the 2024 OVC Tournament. The Eagles were most recently coached by Preston Spradlin, who resigned after his eighth season at Morehead State. Spradlin guided the Eagles to four-straight 20-win seasons for the first time in program history from 2020–24. Morehead State set the program record for most wins in a season during the 2023–24 season, as the Eagles collected a total of 26 wins. Jonathan Mattox, previously associate head coach, was named as the 15th head coach in the program's history.

Postseason results

NCAA Division I tournament results

The Eagles have appeared in nine NCAA Tournaments, with the most recent coming during the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Morehead State is a combined record is 6–10 in the NCAA Tournament. The six NCAA tournament wins are the most by any current Ohio Valley Conference member and are the second-most in OVC history, behind former member Western Kentucky. Additionally, MSU’s nine tournament appearances are third-most in OVC history.

Year	Seed	Round	Opponent	Result
1956		Quarterfinals Semifinals East Regional 3rd Place Game	Marshall Iowa Wayne State	W 107–92 L 83–97 W 95–84
1957		Quarterfinals	Pittsburgh	L 85–86
1961		Quarterfinals Semifinals Mideast Regional Third Place	Xavier Kentucky Louisville	W 71–66 L 64–71 L 61–83
1983	11	First Round	(6) Syracuse	L 59–74
1984	12	Preliminary Round First Round	(12) North Carolina A&T (5) Louisville	W 70–69 L 59–72
2009	16	Opening Round First Round	(16) Alabama State (1) Louisville	W 58–41 L 54–74
2011	13	First Round Second Round	(4) Louisville (12) Richmond	W 62–61 L 48–65
2021	14	First Round	(3) West Virginia	L 67–84
2024	14	First Round	(3) Illinois	L 69–85

NIT results

The Eagles have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament one time. Their combined record is 1–1.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
2023	First Round Second Round	Clemson UAB	W 68–64 L 59–77

CBI results

The Eagles have appeared in three College Basketball Invitational (CBI). Their combined record is 5–4.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
2010	First Round Quarterfinals	Colorado State Boston University	W 74–60 L 89–91
2014	First Round	Illinois State	L 67–77
2016	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals–Game 1 Finals–Game 2 Finals–Game 3	Siena Duquesne Ohio Nevada Nevada Nevada	W 84–80 W 82–72 W 77–72 W 86–83 L 68–77 L 82–85

NAIA

The Eagles have appeared in the NAIA Basketball Tournament once, their record is 0–1.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1951	First Round	Southwest Texas State	L 70–62

Eagles in the NBA

Morehead State has had a total of seven former Eagles play in an NBA game. Xavier Moon is the most recent Morehead State alum to play in the NBA. Moon is currently in his third season with the Los Angeles Clippers, playing on a two-way contract with the Clippers and the NBA G League’s Ontario Clippers, as of the 2023–24 season.

Kenneth Faried is Morehead State’s highest NBA Draft pick, as he is the school’s lone first round pick. Faried was selected as the No. 17 overall pick by the Denver Nuggets in the First Round of the 2011 NBA draft. He would go on to play the most NBA games by an Eagle, as he logged 478 career appearances over eight seasons with the Nuggets, Houston Rockets, and Brooklyn Nets from 2011–19. Faried scored 5,430 points and pulled down 3,884 rebounds in the NBA, both are the most by a Morehead State player.

List of Morehead State players that played in the NBA

Xavier Moon (2021– Pres.)
Kenneth Faried (2011–19)
Bob McCann (1989–98)
Lamar Green (1969–75)
Henry Akin (1966–68)
Steve Hamilton (1958–60)
Dan Swartz (1962–63)

Eagles in international leagues

Demonte Harper (born 1989), basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
Karam Mashour (born 1991), plays in the Israeli Basketball Premier League.

References

"Morehead State Men's Basketball Record Book" (PDF). Morehead State Athletics. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
^ "Morehead State Welcomes Jonathan Mattox Back to Lead Men's Basketball Program". Morehead State University Athletics. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
"Morehead State University :: Brand and Style Guide". Retrieved December 27, 2022.

External links

Official website

v t e Morehead State Eagles men's basketball
Venues	Button Auditorium (1929–1956) Wetherby Gymnasium (1956–1981) Ellis Johnson Arena (1981–present)
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25

v t e Morehead State University
Academics	Craft Academy for Excellence in Science and Mathematics
Athletics	Baseball Men's basketball Women's basketball Bowling Football
Campus	Adron Doran University Center Allen Field Ellis Johnson Arena Jayne Stadium Kentucky Folk Art Center
Miscellaneous	$50SAT CXBN CXBN-2 PocketQube WMKY

Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball

Teams

Championships and awards

Seasons

1948–49
1949–50
1951–52
1952–53
1953–54
1954–55
1955–56
1956–57
1957–58
1958–59
1959–60
1961–62
1962–63
1963–64
1964–65
1965–66
1966–67
1967–68
1968–69
1969–70
1971–72
1972–73
1973–74
1974–75
1975–76
1976–77
1977–78
1978–79
1979–80
1981–82
1982–83
1983–84
1984–85
1985–86
1986–87
1987–88
1988–89
1989–90
1990–91
1991–92
1992–93
1993–94
1994–95
1995–96
1996–97
1997–98
1998–99
1999–2000
2000–01
2001–02
2002–03
2003–04
2004–05
2005–06
2006–07
2007–08
2008–09
2009–10
2010–11
2011–12
2012–13
2013–14
2014–15
2015–16
2016–17
2017–18
2018–19
2019–20
2020–21
2021–22
2022–23

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