Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Raiders Aiming For C-USA Road Sweep
1/15/2016 3:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball
NORFOLK, Va. – With the Charlotte game behind them, the Blue Raiders look to secure a fourth consecutive win on the road Saturday at Old Dominion. If MT does complete the road sweep, head coach Kermit Davis will have reached yet another milestone with his 400th career win.
GAME INFORMATION
(FULL GAME NOTES)
Hashtag: #TrueFamily, #BlueRaiders
Twitter: MT_MBB
Instagram: @MT_MBB
Facebook: Blue Raider Athletics
Date: Saturday, Jan. 16
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Teams: Middle Tennessee (11-5, 3-1 C-USA) vs. Old Dominion (9-8, 2-2 C-USA)
Location: Norfolk, Va.
Stadium: Ted Constant Convocation Center (8,472)
TV: FOX Sports Network
Announcers: James Bates (Play-by-play) and Mike Jarvis (Color)
Radio: WMOT-FM (89.5), WGNS (1450 AM/100.5 FM/101.9 FM), Game 2 (102.5/94.9/95.1)
Play-by-Play: Chip Walters
Live Audio | Live Stats
GAME NOTES:
Protecting the Rock
Since Jacob Ivory's return against Belmont on Dec. 17, Middle Tennessee has taken better care of the ball, leading to more scoring. The Blue Raiders have dropped from 14.4 turnovers per game while Ivory was out to only 11.1 since his return. The emphasis on protecting the ball has helped the Blue Raiders increase their offensive output from 70.2 points per game to 73.1.
Get it Going, Guards
Head Coach Kermit Davis has been looking for more consistent play from his guards outside of Giddy Potts. Sophomore Ed Simpson has shown glimpses of ability to fill that void as he has provided an added spark in many of Middle Tennessee's victories. When MT wins, Simpson is 45.3 percent from the field and 40.6 percent from three-point range, good for 6.4 points per game. In MT losses those numbers drop to 16.7 percent from the field, 9.1 percent from three and 2.0 points per game.
He's Baaack!
Giddy Potts played against UTEP and UTSA last week after sitting out the previous four contests due to an academic issue. The team was happy to see him back as MT averaged 4.9 fewer points per game and the Blue Raider guards were scoring 24.5 points per game, down from 34.9 with Potts in the lineup. Most importantly however, MT was 1-3 without Potts and 10-2 when he does play.
Downtown Raiders
MT has been deadly from beyond the three-point line this season and are currently ranked 60th among D-I teams in three-point percentage (37.4). Sophomore guard Giddy Potts ranks seventh nationally among three-point shooters with a .500 mark from deep. The team has even stepped it up lately, making 9.5 threes per game in conference play compared to just 7.3 in non-conference play.
Fantastic Four
Just last season, Middle Tennessee did not have a single player average over 10 points per game. Reggie Upshaw was close at 9.9, but this season MT has four players in double-figures in Upshaw (13.7), Giddy Potts (16.3), Darnell Harris (13.3) and Perrin Buford (10.3).
And Your Point Is…?
With Jacob Ivory's start against Trevecca, MT has now started all three PGs this season. The Blue Raiders are 4-2 in Copeland's starts, 3-3 in Raymond's and 3-0 in Ivory's. MT is averaging about 10 points more per game when Ivory starts in the small sample size.
Series History
On Saturday, the Middle Tennessee men's basketball team plays at Old Dominion looking to maintain their perfect record against the Monarchs. MT leads the series 5-0 and is 1-0 in Norfolk. In four meetings as members of Conference USA, MT is 4-0, winning by an average of 11.7 points. The schools last met in the 2015 C-USA Tournament with MT advancing on a seven-point victory.
Last Time Out
Giddy Potts tallied a career-high 29 points at Charlotte ina very efficient outing. The sophomore was 9-11 from the field and hit a season-high seven threes in eight attempts.
Darnell Harris added 12 points, including a clutch three in the final minute, while Reggie Upshaw totaled seven points and 13 rebounds and sank the game-winning free throw with just seconds remaining.
Middle Tennessee (11-5, 3-1) shot 47.5 percent from the field and 56.3 percent from three-point range on the night. The Raiders outrebounded Charlotte (4-12, 1-3) 42-28 with a 14-6 edge on the offensive glass.
MT's excellent offensive rebounding led them to 17 second chance points on the night while Charlotte managed just three second chance points. The Blue Raider reserves also outscored Charlotte's bench 17-3.
GAME INFORMATION
(FULL GAME NOTES)
Hashtag: #TrueFamily, #BlueRaiders
Twitter: MT_MBB
Instagram: @MT_MBB
Facebook: Blue Raider Athletics
Date: Saturday, Jan. 16
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Teams: Middle Tennessee (11-5, 3-1 C-USA) vs. Old Dominion (9-8, 2-2 C-USA)
Location: Norfolk, Va.
Stadium: Ted Constant Convocation Center (8,472)
TV: FOX Sports Network
Announcers: James Bates (Play-by-play) and Mike Jarvis (Color)
Radio: WMOT-FM (89.5), WGNS (1450 AM/100.5 FM/101.9 FM), Game 2 (102.5/94.9/95.1)
Play-by-Play: Chip Walters
Live Audio | Live Stats
GAME NOTES:
Protecting the Rock
Since Jacob Ivory's return against Belmont on Dec. 17, Middle Tennessee has taken better care of the ball, leading to more scoring. The Blue Raiders have dropped from 14.4 turnovers per game while Ivory was out to only 11.1 since his return. The emphasis on protecting the ball has helped the Blue Raiders increase their offensive output from 70.2 points per game to 73.1.
Get it Going, Guards
Head Coach Kermit Davis has been looking for more consistent play from his guards outside of Giddy Potts. Sophomore Ed Simpson has shown glimpses of ability to fill that void as he has provided an added spark in many of Middle Tennessee's victories. When MT wins, Simpson is 45.3 percent from the field and 40.6 percent from three-point range, good for 6.4 points per game. In MT losses those numbers drop to 16.7 percent from the field, 9.1 percent from three and 2.0 points per game.
He's Baaack!
Giddy Potts played against UTEP and UTSA last week after sitting out the previous four contests due to an academic issue. The team was happy to see him back as MT averaged 4.9 fewer points per game and the Blue Raider guards were scoring 24.5 points per game, down from 34.9 with Potts in the lineup. Most importantly however, MT was 1-3 without Potts and 10-2 when he does play.
Downtown Raiders
MT has been deadly from beyond the three-point line this season and are currently ranked 60th among D-I teams in three-point percentage (37.4). Sophomore guard Giddy Potts ranks seventh nationally among three-point shooters with a .500 mark from deep. The team has even stepped it up lately, making 9.5 threes per game in conference play compared to just 7.3 in non-conference play.
Fantastic Four
Just last season, Middle Tennessee did not have a single player average over 10 points per game. Reggie Upshaw was close at 9.9, but this season MT has four players in double-figures in Upshaw (13.7), Giddy Potts (16.3), Darnell Harris (13.3) and Perrin Buford (10.3).
And Your Point Is…?
With Jacob Ivory's start against Trevecca, MT has now started all three PGs this season. The Blue Raiders are 4-2 in Copeland's starts, 3-3 in Raymond's and 3-0 in Ivory's. MT is averaging about 10 points more per game when Ivory starts in the small sample size.
Series History
On Saturday, the Middle Tennessee men's basketball team plays at Old Dominion looking to maintain their perfect record against the Monarchs. MT leads the series 5-0 and is 1-0 in Norfolk. In four meetings as members of Conference USA, MT is 4-0, winning by an average of 11.7 points. The schools last met in the 2015 C-USA Tournament with MT advancing on a seven-point victory.
Last Time Out
Giddy Potts tallied a career-high 29 points at Charlotte ina very efficient outing. The sophomore was 9-11 from the field and hit a season-high seven threes in eight attempts.
Darnell Harris added 12 points, including a clutch three in the final minute, while Reggie Upshaw totaled seven points and 13 rebounds and sank the game-winning free throw with just seconds remaining.
Middle Tennessee (11-5, 3-1) shot 47.5 percent from the field and 56.3 percent from three-point range on the night. The Raiders outrebounded Charlotte (4-12, 1-3) 42-28 with a 14-6 edge on the offensive glass.
MT's excellent offensive rebounding led them to 17 second chance points on the night while Charlotte managed just three second chance points. The Blue Raider reserves also outscored Charlotte's bench 17-3.
Players Mentioned
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