The Panthers took their first-ever win at Murray State Thursday night in a 88-86 comeback win.

“We were able to answer the challenge,” head coach Rick Samuels said in a postgame interview on WHQQ 98.9 FM. “It gives us hope in the future. You have to win on the road.”

In the final six seconds of play, junior guard Craig Lewis made a three-point shot from the corner to move Eastern into the lead 88-86. Lewis finished the game with a career-high 27 points.

“He’s made his jump shots in the last few practices, and I just told Craig during the time out that if he’s open, just take the jump shot,” Samuels said. “He was very comfortable taking that shot.”

Murray State (8-9, 2-3) called a time out with 1.9 seconds left on the clock and came back for junior guard Antonio Henderson to attempt a three-point shot for the win. Henderson’s shot rimmed out, giving Eastern (12-7, 4-1) its first road-win at Murray in its six years in the Ohio Valley Conference.

“We made a couple of big plays down the stretch and with Lewis hitting a three instead of a two – they took a desperation three,” Samuels said.

But this comeback was a struggle for the Panthers, who were down by as many as 14 in the second half. Eastern went on a seven-point run to move the score to 73-68.

Junior forward Henry Domercant helped knock Murray’s lead down to two at 77-75, before Lewis hit the next shot to tie the score at 77 with 5:15 left.

“When we caught them at 77 … I thought there was still too much time left on the clock and we made our run too early,” Samuels said. “I thought they would come back and have the intensity of the home crowd behind them, but it just didn’t happen. We made enough smart plays.”

The first half wasn’t any easier on the Panthers, as they struggled immediately after tip off. Murray State opened the game with a pair of three-pointers from junior forward Antoine Whelchel before senior forward Todd Bergmann put Eastern on the scoreboard with his first three-point shot of the season.

Murray State shot 73 percent from the field early in the first half before Eastern found a balance on the court. The Panthers headed into the locker room in a 12-point hole, trailing 52-40.

“Their defense wasn’t able to maintain the intensity with which it started in the game,” Samuels said.

Domercant ended the game with 34 points and 10 rebounds, making this his ninth game over 30 points this season. The junior has scored over 30 points in each of the Panthers five conference games this season. He finished 13-for-14 at the charity stripe, snapping his streak of 41-straight free-throws without a miss.

Lewis finished 10-for-15 from the field while Bergmann scored 10 points for Eastern, his first double-figure game this season. Sophomore Jesse Mackinson also added 10.

The Racers were led by senior guard Justin Burdine with 21 points while Henderson added 17 points and seven boards. Whelchel (16) and junior Kevin Pachel (14) also put up double figures for Murray State.

For the first time since 1992, Murray State is below .500 this late in the season. The Panthers extend their road trip to Tennessee-Martin Saturday for a 6 p.m. tip off.

“That’s a big game for them Saturday night,” Samuels said. “We’ve had some trouble in the past few years at Tennessee-Martin. The baskets seem to be rigid and the floor doesn’t seem to have a lot of bounce.

“Our kids are gaining confidence though and trusting each other a little better.”