The scene in Murray, Kentucky, had all the ingredients of a classic conference night: a loud lower bowl, a quick whistle, and two guards with the kind of competitive edge that shows up in every closeout and every change of direction. Indiana State’s Tierney Kelsey carried the ball with purpose, while Murray State’s Halli Poock met her early—hands active, stance low, eyes locked on the dribble.
That one-on-one framed the possession in the photo: Kelsey probing for a lane, shoulders squared as if she might burst downhill, Poock mirroring the rhythm and squeezing the air out of the space. It was a guard’s chess match—Kelsey hunting for a seam to create, Poock denying angles and daring the next move.
But the game itself didn’t stay small for long. By the time the third quarter dipped under a minute, Murray State had blown the doors open, racing out to an 87–43 advantage behind a staggering 39-point third quarter that drowned out any hope of a Sycamores response.
Poock’s imprint stretched well beyond the defensive stance—she poured in 24 points as the Racers shredded Indiana State with efficient shooting and rapid-fire possessions. Murray State hit shots in bunches, turned stops into easy chances, and played clean basketball, piling up assists while rarely giving the Sycamores a free possession.
Indiana State kept searching for an answer through the guards, and Kelsey continued to fight for daylight, finishing with 10 points as she tried to spark something—anything—against a defense that never relaxed. In the end, the lasting image matched the scoreboard: Poock close enough to contest every breath, Kelsey forced into tougher and tougher decisions, and a Murray State team that looked every bit like a group built to carry momentum into March.
