National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Murray St. 76, Memphis 72
When: 6:00 PM ET, Sunday, December 11, 2011
Where: FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee
Officials: # James Breeding, # Rick Crawford, # Steven Pyatt
Attendance: 16795
By SportsDirect Inc.

Donte Poole hit six 3-pointers and finished with 20 points, leading visiting Murray State to a 76-72 upset over No. 20 Memphis.

Isaiah Canaan added 15 points for the Racers (10-0), who hit nine 3-pointers en route to their best start in 60 years. The win should vault them into the Top 25 for the first time since the end of the 1997-98 season.

The Racers are one of only nine unbeaten teams in the nation, and the only one from the Bluegrass State after No. 1 Kentucky was stunned by Indiana on Saturday.

Will Barton scored 27 points and Joe Jackson added 20 for Memphis (5-3), which lost to an unranked opponent at home for the first time in seven years. The Tigers had won 58 straight at home over unranked foes since a 2004 loss to Providence.

Murray State pulled away midway through the second half with a 16-6 run capped by a 3-pointer from Poole. That gave the Racers a 60-50 lead. The lead grew to 11 points before the Tigers rallied. Jackson’s layup cut the lead to 73-72 with 15 seconds left, but Canaan hit a pair of free throws and Chris Crawford’s game-tying 3-point try was off the mark.

The Racers were already one of the most underrated teams in the country before knocking off the Tigers. They won the Great Alaska Shootout and notched road wins over UAB, Western Kentucky and Dayton.
Top Game Performances
 
Murray St.   Memphis
Donte Poole 20 Scoring Will Barton 27
Isaiah Canaan 7 Assists Chris Crawford 7
Edward Daniel 9 Rebounds Tarik Black 9
Edward Daniel 7 Free Throws Made Joe Jackson 7
Donte Poole 4 Steals Will Barton 3
Edward Daniel 4 Blocks Chris Crawford 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Murray St. 76 43.4 9-20 21-29 15 29 7 10 15
Memphis 72 41.0 6-19 16-20 15 32 5 9 15