Tyler Laser remembers being down 14 points in his high school district championship game when his team came back and won.

Until Thursday, that was the most exciting game he had ever been a part of.

“The Tennessee State game beats it,” said Laser of Thursday’s 83-81, triple-overtime victory. “That was really special just because our team was able to come together.”

The defining moment of the game was in double overtime when the Panthers trailed by nine with fewer than two minutes to play.

A couple of steals and some missed free throws by the Tigers allowed the Panthers to send the game to a third overtime, where they sealed the victory.

“We just huddled up and said ‘Let’s do this,'” Laser said. “We just really fought. It was an ugly game. We played an ugly game but still found a way to win. It’s going to stick with me a long time.”

Newcomers provide spark off bench

The Eastern bench has not played a huge factor in the Eastern men’s basketball team’s outcomes early in the season.

In Thursday’s victory against Tennessee State, the bench produced just 11 points, but it came back strong in Saturday’s 73-60 loss to Austin Peay, finishing with 26 total points.

Against Tennessee State, the 11 points came between just two players, junior guard Curry McKinney and freshman forward Shaun Pratl – the only two newcomers on this year’s squad.

McKinney also had a pair of key steals in the win, and Eastern head coach Mike Miller said he has been pleased with what he has seen out of him early on.

“He’s been a real energy,” Miller said. “He’s proven he can be a good defender out there in a spot that’s critical in this league because the leading scorer, a lot of times, is going to be the guy he’s going to be guarding. He’s adapted well.”

Pratl – the highly touted recruit out of Chicago Richards – is averaging 16.1 minutes per game off the bench and is the team’s leading rebounder at 4.4 per game. He is also fourth on the team with a 7.9 point-per-game average.

Miller said the number of minutes he has received early in the season has increased the confidence the team has in him and he’s played well for a freshman.

“The biggest thing is he’s been productive,” Miller said. “For a freshman, he’s close to playing half the game and that’s a lot. He’s handled it well and brought something to the team. I think the players have confidence in him and that’s a big thing.”

Around the OVC

Three teams made it out of the first weekend of Ohio Valley Conference play unscathed, including two teams finishing 2-0.

Both Murray State and Austin Peay started the season 2-0 with the Racers defeating Morehead State and Eastern Kentucky, and the Governors defeating Eastern and Southeast Missouri.

Jacksonville State also left the weekend without a loss as the Gamecocks played only one game, an 83-72 victory over Tennessee Tech.

Two teams finished the weekend winless, Tennessee Martin and Tennessee State.

The Skyhawks dropped games to Morehead State and Eastern Kentucky, while the Tigers lost the triple-overtime thriller to the Panthers before losing to Southeast Missouri.

Collin Whitchurch can be reached at 581-7944 or cfwhitchurch@eiu.edu.

Eastern junior guard Curry McKinney takes the ball up the court during the game against Indiana-Purdue-Indianapolis on Nov. 18 in Lantz Arena. McKinney had two steals late in the second overtime of the team’s 83-81 triple overtime victory over Tennessee S

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