Young leads Murray State against Valparaiso after 23-point performance

Valparaiso Beacons (4-9, 1-2 MVC) at Murray State Racers (8-4, 2-1 MVC)

Murray, Kentucky; Friday, 7 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Murray State hosts Valparaiso after Katelyn Young scored 23 points in Murray State's 85-78 loss to the Missouri State Bears.

The Racers are 4-1 in home games. Murray State ranks second in the MVC in rebounding with 35.9 rebounds. Ava Learn leads the Racers with 8.3 boards.

The Beacons are 1-2 in MVC play. Valparaiso is seventh in the MVC scoring 66.3 points per game and is shooting 43.8%.

Murray State is shooting 45.5% from the field this season, 1.0 percentage point higher than the 44.5% Valparaiso allows to opponents. Valparaiso averages 7.8 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.5 more made shots on average than the 6.3 per game Murray State gives up.

The matchup Friday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams in conference play.

TOP PERFORMERS: Young is shooting 51.0% and averaging 18.7 points for the Racers.

Leah Earnest is averaging 18.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.6 steals for the Beacons.

LAST 10 GAMES: Racers: 7-3, averaging 89.3 points, 34.5 rebounds, 17.6 assists, 9.8 steals and 2.0 blocks per game while shooting 45.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 76.3 points per game.

Beacons: 4-6, averaging 66.9 points, 25.0 rebounds, 12.3 assists, 10.8 steals and 3.2 blocks per game while shooting 44.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 67.3 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The Associated Press