CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Murray State remained undefeated in Ohio Valley Conference play and ran its winning streak to 19 games as it held off a couple Austin Peay State University second-half surges to claim an 82-72 victory, Saturday night, in Dave Aaron Arena.

The Racers, now 21-4 overall and 11-0 in the OVC, had just two double-figure scorers but it was matching 27-point efforts by Cameron Payne and T.J. Sapp. Just as importantly the duo combined for 19 of 21 at the free-throw line, 13 of those free throws coming in the second half.

The Governors, now 7-17 overall and 2-8 on the OVC, have lost four straight but another poor shooting performance, both from the field and the free-throw line, again led to the Govs undoing. They were just 16-of-31 (52 percent) at the free-throw line—the third straight game shooting less than 70 percent from the line.

The Govs also shot only 38.8 percent from the floor, finishing the first half 1-of-6 from the floor over the final four minutes as the Racers ended the half on a 9-0 run to take a 42-26 margin into intermission.

That lead advanced to 21 points barely four minutes into the second half before the Govs clawed its way with a 15-2 run to climb back within a 56-50 margin.  The Govs comeback was sparked by junior Khalil Davis and freshman guard Josh Robinson, who each had four points during the five-minute stretch.

But the All-American candidate Payne responded with a conventional three-point play, getting into the lane to hit a short jumper and was fouled. Jarvis Williams then hit back-to-back buckets, the second on a pass from Payne, and the lead was back to 13, 63-50, with 7:07 left.

APSU continued to battle and trimmed the advantage to seven, 71-63, after Freeman scored on a dunk and then Robinson collected a steal before subsequently knocking down a jumper with 2:40 left.

But Wayne Langston hit a layup and the Govs' Freeman missed one as the Racer increased their lead to double-digits. It was a deficit the Governors could not overcome in the final two minutes.

Davis bounced back from a subpar outing against UT Martin to score 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds—it was his season's second double-double while the 23 points was the third time he eclipsed the 20-point mark this season.

Chris Horton also tallied a double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds—but the Govs' center made just 6-of-17 shots. Robinson added 13 points, helping the Govs with both late-game charges.

The Govs out-rebounded Murray State 47-37, but could turn 20 offensive grabs into just 16 second-chance points. The Racers finished the night 25 of 52 (48 percent) from the floor while making 27 of 36 (75 percent) at the free-throw line.

-AP-