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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – It will take some help, but Eastern Kentucky’s men’s basketball team enters the final day of the regular season with a chance to earn a share of the Ohio Valley Conference Championship. 

The Colonels (23-7, 12-3 OVC) will play at Tennessee State on Saturday.  If Jacksonville State beats OVC-leader Belmont earlier in the day and EKU knocks off the Tigers, then Eastern and Belmont will share the regular season conference championship.

Eastern’s game is scheduled to begin at 8:30 p.m.  The live radio broadcast of the game is available in the Richmond area on WCYO 100.7 FM, and can be heard worldwide on EKUSports.com.  A FREE live video broadcast of the contest is available on OVCDigitalNetwork.com.

With their 69-54 win over Tennessee Tech on Thursday, the Colonels set a new school record for wins in a season.  The previous record of 22 was set in 2004-05.  Assistant coach Austin Newton and Director of Operations Ryan Wiersma are connected to both of Eastern’s winningest teams.  The two were members of the team when the Colonels won a school record 22 games and now as members of the staff they are a part of this team’s school record 23 wins.

With its win at Tennessee Tech, and Tennessee State’s loss to Morehead State, Eastern secured the No. 3 seed for the OVC Tournament.  Belmont holds the tiebreaker over Eastern Kentucky and will be the No. 1 seed.  Murray State is the No. 2 seed by virtue of finishing atop the West Division standings.  EKU will play the winner of the Southeast Missouri/No. 7 seed game in Nashville on Thursday at 9 p.m. ET.

With 39 victories in his two seasons as a Colonel, senior Mike DiNunno is now the winningest two-year player in program history.  Sophomore Corey Walden scored a team-high 18 points at Tech.  Junior Orlando Williams returned to action on Thursday after missing 11 games due to an injury.

EKU’s current six-game OVC winning streak is its longest since winning seven in a row in 2007.

Tennessee State has lost three of its last five, including two straight.  However, one of its two wins was against OVC-leader Belmont (80-69).

Robert Covington tore the meniscus in his right knee on Dec. 18 and missed 10 games.  For the season, the 6-foot-4, 204-pound senior is averaging 17 points and seven rebounds.  In seven games since returning from the injury he’s averaged 16 points and seven rebounds.

The trio of Patrick Miller, Kellen Thornton and Jordan Cyphers picked up the slack during Covington’s absence.  Miller, a 6-foot-1 junior guard, is averaging 14 points, five assists and four rebounds.  Thornton, a 6-foot-7 245-pound senior forward, is averaging 15 points and eight rebounds.  Cyphers, a 6-foot-4 senior guard, is averaging 12 points.

TSU lost to Morehead State, 101-100, on Thursday.  MSU shot 62 percent from the field and 60 percent from three-point range (15-of-25).  The Tigers shot 46 percent from the field and made 30-of-38 free throws.

Covington had 23 points and eight rebounds.  Thornton finished with 29 points.

Eastern Kentucky leads the all-time series 28-24, but the Tigers are 13-11 in games played in Nashville.