With a win over the University of Illinois Chicago at home on Feb. 11, the Racers got their home record back to an even 6-6. Head Coach Steve Prohm was looking forward to building on that win.
“The next two are at home,” Prohm said. “Northern Iowa, four o’clock, and man we’ve got a chance to make a step in the league standings.”
Looking to get into the top five of the Missouri Valley Conference standings, the next two games for the Racers were supposed to be Northern Iowa and Southern Illinois in the CFSB Center. The Racers had defeated both teams on the road earlier in the season.
But on Saturday, Feb. 15, during the women’s basketball game against the University of Northern Iowa, the CFSB Center lost power. The game continued after a short delay at halftime, but the issues persisted into Sunday.
The Murray State athletics department did not comment, but instead directed people to their social media for updates.
The first update saw the athletics department push the men’s game against UNI back from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. In another announcement, the date and location changed to the Curb Event Center at Belmont University in Nashville for a Monday night tip-off.
With the game going to Nashville, the Racers had to travel two hours by bus instead of playing in their own gym.
The Racers lost 74-67 despite taking an early lead. However, it wasn’t the date or location change of the game that did them in, but the 13 turnovers and many missed shots were the reason they lost, Prohm said.
“We turned it over in both halves and had no physicality in the paint,” Prohm said. “We had a couple of bad stretches in both halves and we were able to get it back. But this is a tough loss, this is one we needed to keep gaining momentum and win our third in a row.”
The Racers dropped to 7-9 in conference play which matched that of their next opponent Southern Illinois, who they beat 74-64 in Carbondale on Jan. 22.
Murray State Athletics announced after the game in Nashville that Murray State versus Southern Illinois would take place in Carbondale at 6 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 18. The announcement cemented the change from what was supposed to be three games at home to three games away, as the next game after SIU will be in Peoria, Ill. to face the Bradley Braves.
With five teams tied at 7-9 in the conference, the matchup was set to be consequential in the standings. With the conference tournament under three weeks away, every win matters to earn a higher seed.
The Racers defeated SIU 62-60 in what was a very back-and-forth game. It all came down to a pair of free throws for the Racers that secured the win. A last-second three-pointer from the Salukis missed the mark and the game was over.
The Racers only have one more home game left this season on Feb. 25 against Indiana State. 
