Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Thursday, January 7
Murfreesboro, TN
6:00 p.m.
Middle Tennessee
-95, 11 CUSA
78
vs
72
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UTEP (ASN)
-106, 21 CUSA
1
2
F
UTEP
34
38
72
Middle Tennessee
37
41
78
Team Stats
UTEP
MT
FG%
.404
.420
3FG%
.313
.360
FT%
.808
.579
RB
39
44
TO
10
8
STL
2
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G/F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballHarris, Buford lead MT to first C-USA win
1/7/2016 8:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Harris scores season-high 21 points against UTEP
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Two clutch free throws down the stretch by Perrin Buford sealed a, 78-72, victory Thursday night, handing UTEP their first conference loss of the season.
Darnell Harris led the Raiders with a season-high 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Reggie Upshaw tallied his fifth double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds while Buford added 15 points and eight boards.
Middle Tennessee (9-5, 1-1) shot 42.0 percent from the field and 36.0 percent from three-point range on the night. The Raiders outrebounded UTEP (10-6, 2-1) 44-39 with 17 rebounds coming on the offensive glass.
Hot shooting put the lead in the hands of the Blue Raiders for the entire first half, going 7-of-13 from beyond the arc before the break. Buford, Harris and Simpson hit two three-pointers each in the first 20 minutes.
Middle Tennessee stretched the lead out to a 12-point advantage at the 10:12 mark, but an 18-9 UTEP run over the final 6:48 brought them back within three at the half, going into the locker room with the score at 37-34.
UTEP took its first lead of the game at he 17:23 mark when a pair of free throws made the score 40-39, but the Blue Raiders answered right back with back-to-back buckets by freshman Karl Gamble.
The Miners took the lead one more time with 15:02 remaining, going up 47-45 with a three-pointer. Harris tied the game on the next Blue Raider possession before Upshaw put Middle Tennessee back on top for good.
A Quavius Copeland to Buford alley-oop with the shot clock winding down and just under 11 minutes remaining got the Murphy Center crowd off its feet. The burst of energy in the arena pushed the Blue Raiders down the stretch, holding UTEP to two field goals in its last 13 attempts.
Middle Tennessee will host UTSA at the Murphy Center on Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
Darnell Harris led the Raiders with a season-high 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Reggie Upshaw tallied his fifth double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds while Buford added 15 points and eight boards.
Middle Tennessee (9-5, 1-1) shot 42.0 percent from the field and 36.0 percent from three-point range on the night. The Raiders outrebounded UTEP (10-6, 2-1) 44-39 with 17 rebounds coming on the offensive glass.
Hot shooting put the lead in the hands of the Blue Raiders for the entire first half, going 7-of-13 from beyond the arc before the break. Buford, Harris and Simpson hit two three-pointers each in the first 20 minutes.
Middle Tennessee stretched the lead out to a 12-point advantage at the 10:12 mark, but an 18-9 UTEP run over the final 6:48 brought them back within three at the half, going into the locker room with the score at 37-34.
UTEP took its first lead of the game at he 17:23 mark when a pair of free throws made the score 40-39, but the Blue Raiders answered right back with back-to-back buckets by freshman Karl Gamble.
The Miners took the lead one more time with 15:02 remaining, going up 47-45 with a three-pointer. Harris tied the game on the next Blue Raider possession before Upshaw put Middle Tennessee back on top for good.
A Quavius Copeland to Buford alley-oop with the shot clock winding down and just under 11 minutes remaining got the Murphy Center crowd off its feet. The burst of energy in the arena pushed the Blue Raiders down the stretch, holding UTEP to two field goals in its last 13 attempts.
Middle Tennessee will host UTSA at the Murphy Center on Saturday at 3:00 p.m.
Facility tour – Stephen and Denise Smith Student-Athlete Performance Center
Wednesday, July 30
2025 Blue Raider Blitz Media Panel
Thursday, July 03
MTSU Men's Basketball Coach Nick McDevitt interview at 2025 Blue Raider Blitz
Monday, June 30
MTSU Men's Basketball Post Game Press Conference vs Chattanooga NIT 3/18/25
Tuesday, March 18
