MURRAY, Ky. – In a battle between the top two preseason conference favorites, host Murray State cruised to an 80-51 victory over the Eastern Kentucky men's basketball team Thursday evening at the Regional Special Events Center. The contest was the Ohio Valley Conference opener for both squads.

Senior Jason McLeish paced the Colonels (2-5, 0-1 OVC) with 15 points while fellow senior Matt Witt added nine points and eight assists.

For the Racers (3-2, 1-0), Issian Redding and Shawn Witherspoon combined for 47 points on 19-of-24 shooting (79.2 percent) from the floor. The win was Murray State's 14th straight over Eastern Kentucky on its home court.

Eastern shot 52.2 percent (12-of-23) in the first half, but still found itself down by 12 points at the break, 41-29. The Racers countered with 57.1 percent (16-of-28) shooting and also outrebounded the Colonels, 16-9.

The start of the second half did not go well for EKU as Murray State connected on 14 of its first 17 shot attempts. Meanwhile, the Colonels only managed four points in the first 10 minutes of the second half causing Eastern to drop its opening league tilt for the first time in four years.

Eastern Kentucky continues its two-game road swing this Saturday, Dec. 10, in a rematch of last year's OVC Tournament championship game at Austin Peay. Tip time is slated for 8:30 p.m.