Ohio Valley Conference 2002-03 Season Recap
by Zach Van Hart
During the regular season, Morehead State and Austin Peay were the cream of the crop, while Tennessee State made the most headlines for their poor antics on and off the court. The final weekend of the season saw the Eagles and Govs go head-to-head, with the regular season title and No. 1 seed in the tournament on the line. Austin Peay won, and the two teams split the regular season crown with 13-3 OVC marks. But by virtue of sweeping the season series, the Govs earned the top spot in the tourney.
Austin Peay survived two scares to reach the conference finals. First, Corey Gipson hit a three-pointer with 0.9 seconds remaining during the quarterfinals to defeat No. 8 seed Eastern Kentucky, 83-80. Next, they had to go to overtime to knock off No. 4 Murray State, 59-56. Morehead however could not duplicate the Govs run, falling in the semis to Tennessee Tech. But Austin Peay proved to be too much for the Golden Eagles, as they won 63-57.
NCAA Tournament
Austin Peay
Lost to Louisville, 86-64
Awards
First Team All OVC
Ricky Minard, Morehead State
Chez Marks, Morehead State
Henry Domercant, Eastern Illinois
Damien Kinloch, Tennessee Tech
James Singleton, Murray State
Conference Player of the Year
Henry Domercant, Eastern Illinois
A close call against Ricky Minard, but Domercant simply would get on streaks where entire teams could not stop him. Ended up averaging 27.9 points a game.
Freshman of the Year
Mike Witt, Eastern Kentucky
Newcomer of the Year
Earl Bullock, Tennessee-Martin
Defensive Player of the Year
James Singleton, Murray State
Coach of the Year
Dave Loos, Austin Peay
Austin Peay 23-8, 13-3 OVC
Starters staying: 5, leaving: 0
Key players returning:
senior forward Adrian Henning
junior guard Anthony Davis
senior center Josh Lewis
Top returning scorer: Henning, 15.5 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Henning, 7.1 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Corey Gipson, 2.6 assists per game
Morehead State 20-9, 13-3 OVC
Starters staying: 2, leaving: 3
Players leaving:
Chez Marks, graduated
Marquis Sykes, graduated
Ike Lopez, graduated
Key players returning:
senior guard Ricky Minard
junior forward Chad McKnight
senior center Anton Kerley
Top returning scorer: Minard, 22.5 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Minard, 6.2 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Minard, 4.0 assists per game
Status up in the air: Anton Kerley was suspended indefinitely at the end of the season for violating team rules. His future at MSU is in question.
Tennessee Tech 20-12, 11-5 OVC
Starters staying: 1, leaving: 4
Players leaving:
Greg Morgan, graduated
Damien Perkins, graduated
Brent Jolly, graduated
Damien Kinloch, graduated
Key players returning:
senior guard Cameron Crisp
senior guard William Moore
sophomore guard Keyon Boyd
Top returning scorer: Crisp, 13.6 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Crisp, 3.8 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Crisp, 4.5 assists per game
Murray State 17-12, 9-7 OVC
Starters staying: 3, leaving: 2
Players leaving:
Antione Whelchel, graduated
James Singleton, graduated
Key players returning:
senior forward Cuthbert Victor
senior guard Rick Jones
senior guard Chris Shumate
Top returning scorer: Victor, 15.3 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Singleton, 11.0 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Mark Borders, 3.0 assists per game
Coaching move: Head coach Tevester Anderson retired at the end of the season. Former Louisville assistant Mick Cronin was named the new head coach.
Eastern Illinois 14-15, 9-7 OVC
Starters staying: 2, leaving: 3
Players leaving:
Henry Domercant, graduated
Craig Lewis, graduated
J. R. Reynolds, graduated
Key players returning:
senior center Jesse Mackinson
senior forward David Roos
junior forward Andy Gobzcynski
Top returning scorer: Mackinson, 9.8 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Mackinson, 5.0 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Jason Wright, 1.6 assists per game
Tennessee Martin 14-14, 7-9 OVC
Starters staying: 3, leaving: 2
Players leaving:
Okechi Egbe, graduated
Joey Walker, graduated
Key players returning:
senior guard Earl Bullock
junior guard Jeremy Kelly
senior forward J. C. Howe
Top returning scorer: Bullock, 16.0 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Howe, 6.2 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Kelly, 3.7 assists per game
Southeast Missouri 11-19, 5-11 OVC
Starters staying: 4, leaving: 1
Player leaving:
Tim Scheer, graduated
Key players returning:
junior guard Derek Winans
junior guard Kevin Roberts
senior forward Brandon Griffin
Top returning scorer: Winans, 15.3 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Griffin, 10.5 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Roberts, 6.2 assists per game
Eastern Kentucky 11-17, 5-11 OVC
Starters staying: 3, leaving: 2
Players leaving:
Kenyatta Dix, graduated
Shawn Fields, graduated
Key players returning:
senior forward Jon Bentley
junior forward Michael Haney
sophomore guard Matt Witt
Top returning scorer: Witt, 13.6 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Haney, 5.9 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Witt, 5.1 assists per game
Tennessee State 2-25, 0-16 OVC
Starters staying: 3, leaving: 2
Players leaving:
Arvid Caldwell, graduated
Josh Cooperwood, graduated
Key players returning:
junior forward Roshaun Bowens
senior center Cedric Bryson
senior guard Garrett Richardson
Top returning scorer: Bowens, 15.4 points per game
Top returning rebounder: Bowens, 6.7 rebounds per game
Top returning assist man: Richardson, 3.7 assists per game
Coaching change: After the coaching mess this past year, Cy Alexander is the new head coach. He was formerly the head coach of South Carolina State.
