By: Colby Wilson, Associate Director of Athletics Communications
CLARKSVILLE— The regular season comes to an end Saturday for Austin Peay State University men's basketball team when the Govs travel to Jacksonville State to take on the Gamecocks in a 4 p.m. clash from Pete Mathews Coliseum.
The postseason scenario is simple for the Govs; a win, and a Murray State loss to Tennessee Tech, will put Austin Peay as the five-seed at next week's Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. Any other outcomes or scenarios feature the Govs as the No. 6 seed.
Scouting the Gamecocks
Jacksonville State is one of the few teams in the Ohio Valley Conference who can credibly claim to have the inside presence necessary to battle Terry Taylor and the Govs on the glass. The Gamecocks, with six rotational players standing 6-6 or taller, lead the league in rebounds per game (38.8) and boast a plus-4.8 rebounding margin; this matchup will pit the Governors, the league's best offensive rebounding outfit (12.6 per game, 36.2 percent) against Jacksonville State's league-high 27.6 defensive rebounds per game. And not to put too fine a point on the matter, but the victor will likely be found on the glass; the Govs are 9-3 this season when outrebounding an opponent, while the Gamecocks are 16-3 when winning the battle of the boards. Missed shots were hard to come by in the last meeting; the teams combined for just 43 rebounds, including a season-low 20 for the Govs.
Austin Peay will need to take advantage of its superior ball-control skills to come out with a win; the Govs plus-1.60 turnover margin mark is third in the league, while Jacksonville State's negative-1.88 showing is ninth; pushing any advantage, especially in transition (Austin Peay got 10 points against the Gamecocks on the break in the last meeting and have averaged 14.3 transition points per game since Jan. 30) will help turn the game into a breakneck pace the Govs thrive in.
Traditionally, when the Govs and Gamecocks have met in Jacksonville the game has been a thriller. Last season, the Govs clawed their way out of an early 19-point deficit to rally in the second half for a 71-67 win, thanks largely to 16 second-half points by Carlos Paez. The year before Jabari McGhee's three-point play with 21 seconds remaining helped the Govs put away the Gamecocks after the hosts had rallied from a 23-4 deficit early on.
Last Time Against Jacksonville State
Jacksonville State hit eight of its first 11 shots from the floor to get out to a hot start, but Austin Peay held the Gamecocks to eight points over the final 11 minutes of the first half to take a 32-28 lead into the break. However, the Govs didn't hit a shot from the floor over the final 5:12 of the second half and Jacksonville State shot an impressive 63.3 percent from the floor, highlighted by a 20-point, 9-for-13 showing from Brandon Huffman inside and Darian Adams (22 points, 4-for-7 from deep) on the perimeter.
Keep An Eye On…
- Mike Peake is hitting 64.7 percent (77-for-119) from the floor over his last 17 games.
- Over the last nine games, the Govs are at 81.3 percent (165-for-203) from the free-throw line.
- Reginald Gee has made 14 straight free-throws since Feb. 16
- Carlos Paez has hit 34 consecutive free-throws dating back to Jan. 2.
- The Govs are plus-29 in turnover margin over the last eight games.
- Gee is averaging 13.8 points over his last four games.
- A win...
- … would mark Austin Peay's fourth straight road win against Jacksonville State.
- … would be Austin Peay's first win in the regular season finale since 2017.
- … would give the Govs 15 wins for the fourth year in a row and fifth time in the last six campaigns.
- A loss…
- … would be the Governors first in Jacksonville since 2017.
- … would give Jacksonville State its first-ever sweep of the Govs in the season series.
- Milestone Watch—Career: Taylor's next start will give him sole possession of the school record with 126, while his next blocked shot would be No. 131, moving him into sole possession of fourth. He needs four three-point attempts to move into the program career top-10 and six made threes to move into the top-10 in that category.
- Milestone Watch—OVC: Taylor needs 14 points to pass Murray State's Jeff Martin (1985-89) for third all-time in league history in scoring.
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Govs in the time of COVID
For the 2020-21 season, Austin Peay State University athletics will allow approximately 35 percent capacity in the Dunn Center for home basketball events. There will be no lower bowl seating for fans during the season. The lower level will be limited to players, coaches, and game-day support staff only. Seats will be assigned to create a buffer between groups to ensure social distancing is maintained. Students seating will be located in sections AA-BB for both men's and women's games. Masks or facial coverings are required to enter the Dunn Center. They must remain in place at all times unless eating or drinking. Failure to comply with any of these measures, by fans or media, could result in immediate expulsion from the arena.
In the time of COVID-19, there is always a chance a game will not come to fruition or something else will pop up first. Be sure to monitor LetsGoPeay.com and follow @AustinPeayMBB on Twitter for the latest updates.
Govs Online
Check back at LetsGoPeay.com and on Austin Peay's Official Athletics Facebook page often for up-to-date news about all Governor athletics, as well as the Governor men's basketball Twitter page (@AustinPeayMBB). Live stats will be available during the game at PeayStats.com, and all home games and Ohio Valley Conference games can be viewed on the ESPN+ app. ESPN Clarksville (104.1 FM/540 AM) will carry the radio broadcast locally and online.
