Morant scores 29 and Murray State routs Eastern Illinois

CHARLESTON, Ill. (AP) Ja Morant scored 29 points, 20 of his team's 48 in the first half, and Murray State routed Eastern Illinois 83-61 on Thursday night.

Morant, a sophomore guard averaging 23.1 points and a nation-best 10.7 assists per game, had nine assists and made 11-of-16 from the field, including 4-of-5 3-pointers. Shaq Buchanan added 17 points and eight rebounds, and KJ Williams had 14 points and 16 rebounds for the Racers (14-2, 5-0 Ohio Valley).

Mack Smith led the Panthers (10-8, 3-2) with 22 points. Shareef Smith added 13 points and Rade Kukobat scored 12.

The Racers had runs of 15-2 and 12-5 in the first half and led 48-29 at the break. Eastern Illinois would get only as close as 15 points in the second half.

Murray State shot 52 percent and had a 48-32 advantage in rebounds.