Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Sunday, December 13
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
2:00 PM
Middle Tennessee
4-4
52
vs
68
Kentucky
9-0
1
2
3
4
F
Kentucky
18
17
25
8
68
Middle Tennessee
8
20
20
4
52
Team Stats
UK
MT
FG%
.467
.340
3FG%
.167
.250
FT%
.786
.524
RB
32
40
TO
14
26
STL
10
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
15
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
7
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G/F
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballSpirited effort falls short against No. 8 Kentucky
12/13/2015 4:32:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MT falls 68-52
MURFREESBORO – Middle Tennessee (4-4) showed great effort against No. 8 Kentucky (9-0) Sunday, but the Blue Raiders fell short, 68-52, in their upset bid in front of 5,190 at Murphy Center.
Brea Edwards again led Middle Tennessee with 15 points and added six rebounds, as Ty Petty (14) and Olivia Jones (10) also netted double figures for the Raiders.
Makayla Epps showed great talent for Kentucky as she led all scorers with 17 points as the Wildcats also had three players in double figures. Evelyn Akhator's nine boards were the most of anyone in the game, as she was a force to be reckoned with in the paint for Kentucky.
One bright spot for Middle Tennessee (4-4) was its work on the boards, where it out-rebounded the bigger Kentucky squad, 40-32. Rebecca Reuter continued her outstanding work on the glass with a team-best eight caroms, followed by Edwards with six and Jones with five.
The Raiders struggled all afternoon with the Wildcats tough defense. MT turned the ball over 26 times and had seven shots blocked by Kentucky during the contest.
The Raiders defense was pretty good as well as they out-rebounded the Wildcats 40-32 and held them to their fewest points this season at 68. It was a feat only matched by the No. 15 team in the country, Arizona State, Nov. 15. MT held Kentucky to one 3-pointer on the day, also the fewest the Lady Wildcats (9-0) have made in a single game this season.
"I thought we battled and played hard and with toughness," Blue Raider Head Coach Rick Insell said. "We just didn't hit enough shots. We had some good looks and just didn't convert them and there were some looks from close range. I am pleased with our rebounding and defensive effort, though. We just held the No. 8 team in the country almost 20 points below their average and out-rebounded them, so we can learn a lot from this."
Middle Tennessee also had trouble from the free-throw line as they were only 52 percent for the game on 11-for-21.
The Raiders took an early 5-2 lead to open the game, but the joy was short lived as Kentucky closed the opening quarter on a 16-3 run to earn an 18-8 advantage after 10 minutes. The rest of the game was fairly even as Middle Tennessee outscored the Wildcats 20-17 in the second frame to only trail 35-28 at the half.
A quick 6-2 Kentucky run to open the second half pushed the lead back to 11 at 41-30 and the Raiders were never able to close the gap again, dropping the third quarter 25-20 and the fourth quarter 8-4 as the Wildcats finished off the 68-52 win.
Middle Tennessee will again have a few days off before their next game. They host Missouri State Thursday for their Education Day game which begins at 11 a.m. at Murphy Center.
Brea Edwards again led Middle Tennessee with 15 points and added six rebounds, as Ty Petty (14) and Olivia Jones (10) also netted double figures for the Raiders.
Makayla Epps showed great talent for Kentucky as she led all scorers with 17 points as the Wildcats also had three players in double figures. Evelyn Akhator's nine boards were the most of anyone in the game, as she was a force to be reckoned with in the paint for Kentucky.
One bright spot for Middle Tennessee (4-4) was its work on the boards, where it out-rebounded the bigger Kentucky squad, 40-32. Rebecca Reuter continued her outstanding work on the glass with a team-best eight caroms, followed by Edwards with six and Jones with five.
The Raiders struggled all afternoon with the Wildcats tough defense. MT turned the ball over 26 times and had seven shots blocked by Kentucky during the contest.
The Raiders defense was pretty good as well as they out-rebounded the Wildcats 40-32 and held them to their fewest points this season at 68. It was a feat only matched by the No. 15 team in the country, Arizona State, Nov. 15. MT held Kentucky to one 3-pointer on the day, also the fewest the Lady Wildcats (9-0) have made in a single game this season.
"I thought we battled and played hard and with toughness," Blue Raider Head Coach Rick Insell said. "We just didn't hit enough shots. We had some good looks and just didn't convert them and there were some looks from close range. I am pleased with our rebounding and defensive effort, though. We just held the No. 8 team in the country almost 20 points below their average and out-rebounded them, so we can learn a lot from this."
Middle Tennessee also had trouble from the free-throw line as they were only 52 percent for the game on 11-for-21.
The Raiders took an early 5-2 lead to open the game, but the joy was short lived as Kentucky closed the opening quarter on a 16-3 run to earn an 18-8 advantage after 10 minutes. The rest of the game was fairly even as Middle Tennessee outscored the Wildcats 20-17 in the second frame to only trail 35-28 at the half.
A quick 6-2 Kentucky run to open the second half pushed the lead back to 11 at 41-30 and the Raiders were never able to close the gap again, dropping the third quarter 25-20 and the fourth quarter 8-4 as the Wildcats finished off the 68-52 win.
Middle Tennessee will again have a few days off before their next game. They host Missouri State Thursday for their Education Day game which begins at 11 a.m. at Murphy Center.
Facility tour – Stephen and Denise Smith Student-Athlete Performance Center
Wednesday, July 30
Rick Insell Conference USA Hall of Fame Announcement
Wednesday, July 09
2025 Blue Raider Blitz Media Panel
Thursday, July 03
MTSU Women's Basketball Coach Rick Insell interview at 2025 Blue Raider Blitz
Monday, June 30
