Rhode Island Stomps Murray State

March 13, 1998 / 10:45 PM EST / CBS/AP

Antonio Reynolds-Dean had 16 points, seven rebounds and four blocks Friday night as Rhode Island rolled to a 97-74 victory over Murray State in the first round of the NCAA Midwest Regional.

Rhode Island (23-8) will play the winner of the Kansas-Prairie View A&M game on Sunday.

It was expected to be a close game, but the eighth-seeded Rams surged to a 44-24 halftime lead as No. 9 Murray State shot only 27 percent from the field and the Racers never threatened in the second half.

Preston Murphy scored 16 points for Rhode Island, while Tyson Wheeler had 14 points, five rebounds and seven assists. Luther Clay added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Rams, whose point total was their highest of the season.

Isaac Spencer led Murray State (29-4) with 18 points and 12 rebounds. De'Teri Mayes added 16 points for the Racers.
Rhode Island, an at-large selection from the Atlantic 10, gave the league its first victory of the opening round after four losses.

The game matched two coaches who are close friends.

Murray State's Mark Gottfried was an assistant under Rhode Island's Jim Harrick at UCLA in 1995 when the Bruins won a national title. Harrick is in his first year at Rhode Island.

Murray State hit six of its first nine shots to build a 12-5 lead, but then went 4-for-27 as Rhode Island took control.

Rhode Island went on a 12-0 run behind Wheeler, and the Racers couldn't rally. The Rams led by as many as 29 points in the second half and Reynolds-Dean rested the last nine minutes.

Murray State shot only 40 per cent from the field and was outrebounded 50-41. Rhode Island shot 55 per cent from the field.

Murray State, which won the Ohio Valley Conference tournament, fell to 1-9 in NCAA tournament games.

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