# 1989–90 Murray State Racers men's basketball team

The 1989–90 Murray State Racers men's basketball team represented Murray State University during the 1989–90 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 21–9, 10–2 in OVC play to win the OVC regular season championship. They defeated Eastern Kentucky to win the OVC tournament to advance to the NCAA tournament. As No. 16 seed in the Southeast region, the Racers took No. 1 seed Michigan State to overtime before losing 75–71.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 29, 1989* | | at Western Kentucky | W 66–64 | 1–0 | E.A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, Kentucky |
| Dec 2, 1989* | | at Saint Louis | L 68–78 | 1–1 | Kiel Auditorium St. Louis, Missouri |
| Dec 4, 1989* | | at Eastern Illinois | L 50–55 | 1–2 | Lantz Arena Charleston, Illinois |
| Dec 9, 1989* | | Southern Illinois | L 108–114 $^{3OT}$ | 1–3 | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Dec 11, 1989* | | Georgia Southern | L 69–71 | 1–4 | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Dec 16, 1989* | | at Evansville | L 69–93 | 1–5 | Roberts Stadium Evansville, Indiana |
| Dec 18, 1989* | | Southern California College | W 71–68 | 2–5 | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Dec 29, 1989* | | vs. Texas-San Antonio Lamar Tournament | W 107–101 $^{OT}$ | 3–5 | Montagne Center Beaumont, Texas |
| Dec 30, 1989* | | at Lamar Lamar Tournament | W 88–81 | 4–5 | Montagne Center Beaumont, Texas |
| Jan 3, 1990* | | Saint Louis | L 60–76 | 4–6 | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Jan 5, 1990* | | vs. Alcorn State McDonnell Classic | W 72–60 | 5–6 | Clemente Center Melbourne, Florida |
| Jan 6, 1990* | | vs. Florida Tech McDonnell Classic | W 72–62 | 6–6 | Clemente Center Melbourne, Florida |
| Jan 9, 1990* | | Arkansas State | W 64–62 | 7–6 | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Jan 13, 1990 | | Morehead State | W 71–55 | 8–6 (1–0) | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Jan 15, 1990 | | Eastern Kentucky | W 58–45 | 9–6 (2–0) | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Jan 20, 1990 | | at Middle Tennessee State | W 80–71 | 10–6 (3–0) | Murphy Center Murfreesboro, Tennessee |
| Jan 22, 1990 | | at Tennessee Tech | W 81–75 | 11–6 (4–0) | Eblen Center Cookeville, Tennessee |
| Jan 27, 1990* | | at Nicholls State | W 75–56 | 12–6 | Stopher Gymnasium Thibodaux, Louisiana |
| Jan 29, 1990 | | at Tennessee State | W 80–67 | 13–6 (5–0) | Gentry Center Nashville, Tennessee |
| Feb 3, 1990 | | at Austin Peay | W 58–55 | 14–6 (6–0) | Dunn Center Clarksville, Tennessee |
| Feb 5, 1990 | | Austin Peay | W 66–58 | 15–6 (7–0) | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Feb 10, 1990 | | Tennessee State | W 90–89 | 16–6 (8–0) | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Feb 12, 1990* | | at Georgia Southern | W 82–79 | 17–6 | Hanner Fieldhouse Statesboro, Georgia |
| Feb 17, 1990 | | Tennessee Tech | W 71–63 | 18–6 (9–0) | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Feb 19, 1990 | | Middle Tennessee State | L 76–81 | 18–7 (9–1) | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Feb 24, 1990 | | at Eastern Kentucky | W 74–69 | 19–7 (10–1) | McBrayer Arena Richmond, Kentucky |
| Feb 26, 1990 | | at Morehead State | L 79–81 | 19–8 (10–2) | Ellis Johnson Arena Morehead, Kentucky |
| Ohio Valley Conference tournament ||||||
| Mar 4, 1990* | (1) | (7) Austin Peay Semifinal | W 68–67 | 20–8 | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| Mar 5, 1990* | (1) | (4) Eastern Kentucky Championship | W 63–57 | 21–8 | Racer Arena Murray, Kentucky |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| Mar 15, 1990* | (16 SE) | vs. (1 SE) No. 3 Michigan State First Round | L 71–75 $^{OT}$ | 21–9 | Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, Tennessee |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. SE=Southeast. All times are in Central Time. ||||||

## Awards and honors

* Popeye Jones – OVC Player of the Year