Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Thursday, November 22
Paradise Island, Bahamas
8:30 PM
Middle Tennessee
3-3
53
vs
84
Butler
4-1
1
2
F
Middle Tennessee
27
26
53
Butler
44
40
84
Team Stats
MTSU
BUTLER
FG%
.321
.517
3FG%
.286
.457
FT%
.652
.600
RB
42
33
TO
20
10
STL
6
12
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
7
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Hot-shooting Bulldogs down Raiders in Atlantis
11/22/2018 11:38:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Butler sinks tournament record 16 3-pointers
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas – After a promising showing for the young Blue Raiders in their Battle 4 Atlantis opener against No. 4 Virginia, Middle Tennessee struggled in round two as they fell to Butler by a final score of 84-53.
The Blue Raiders were forced to fight through Butler runs early and often beginning with an 8-0 Bulldog run following an Antonio Green 3-pointer that made the score 10-5.
A Donovan Sims jumper stopped the bleeding, but only momentarily as Butler went back on the offensive with a 9-0 run to open up a 19-7 lead through just over eight minutes.
A pair of free throws by James Hawthorne and a corner three by Sims saw MT show some life and pull back within single digits. The Bulldogs responded immediately, this time with a 10-0 run to expand their lead out to 17.
"Butler took it to us early and we just had way too many turnovers, particularly early in the game," Head Coach Nick McDevitt said. "We were averaging almost a turnover a minute and you can't do that against teams like Butler. You turn it over at that rate and you are going to find yourself in a big hole early, and we were."
Middle Tennessee's Reggie Scurry dropped in a jumper at the 7:30 mark followed by a Butler 3-pointer to give them their largest lead of the half at 18 before MT began to trade baskets with the Bulldogs and climb back into the game.
A 13-6 advantage for the Blue Raiders over 6-minute period closed the gap to 11 with just over a minute remaining in the half, but a pair of Sean McDermott 3-pointers – his fifth and sixth of the half – gave Butler a 44-27 lead at the break.
As the teams went into their locker rooms, Butler's 46 percent effort from the field and 45 percent effort from three barely edged MT's marks of 40 and 43 percent, but 13 turnovers to BU's four gave the Bulldogs ample opportunities to put the ball in the basket.
Butler opened the second frame with the first five points of the half to quickly open up their first 20-point advantage, but the Blue Raiders hit back with a pair of buckets by Green and Jayce Johnson to cut it back to 18.
After back-to-back 3-pointers in quick succession by Butler the Blue Raiders began to struggle from the field the rest of the way while the hot-shooting Bulldogs got hotter to quickly put the score out of reach.
Butler finished the contest off by shooting 60 percent (15 of 25) from the field in the second half and poured in seven more triples after the break to pull away.
The Bulldogs' 16 3-pointers on the night set a Battle 4 Atlantis record while McDermott's seven triples also set a new B4A high mark.
Middle Tennessee closes out their stay in the Bahamas on Friday as they face Stanford at 6:00 p.m. CT on ESPNU.
The Blue Raiders were forced to fight through Butler runs early and often beginning with an 8-0 Bulldog run following an Antonio Green 3-pointer that made the score 10-5.
A Donovan Sims jumper stopped the bleeding, but only momentarily as Butler went back on the offensive with a 9-0 run to open up a 19-7 lead through just over eight minutes.
A pair of free throws by James Hawthorne and a corner three by Sims saw MT show some life and pull back within single digits. The Bulldogs responded immediately, this time with a 10-0 run to expand their lead out to 17.
"Butler took it to us early and we just had way too many turnovers, particularly early in the game," Head Coach Nick McDevitt said. "We were averaging almost a turnover a minute and you can't do that against teams like Butler. You turn it over at that rate and you are going to find yourself in a big hole early, and we were."
Middle Tennessee's Reggie Scurry dropped in a jumper at the 7:30 mark followed by a Butler 3-pointer to give them their largest lead of the half at 18 before MT began to trade baskets with the Bulldogs and climb back into the game.
A 13-6 advantage for the Blue Raiders over 6-minute period closed the gap to 11 with just over a minute remaining in the half, but a pair of Sean McDermott 3-pointers – his fifth and sixth of the half – gave Butler a 44-27 lead at the break.
As the teams went into their locker rooms, Butler's 46 percent effort from the field and 45 percent effort from three barely edged MT's marks of 40 and 43 percent, but 13 turnovers to BU's four gave the Bulldogs ample opportunities to put the ball in the basket.
Butler opened the second frame with the first five points of the half to quickly open up their first 20-point advantage, but the Blue Raiders hit back with a pair of buckets by Green and Jayce Johnson to cut it back to 18.
After back-to-back 3-pointers in quick succession by Butler the Blue Raiders began to struggle from the field the rest of the way while the hot-shooting Bulldogs got hotter to quickly put the score out of reach.
Butler finished the contest off by shooting 60 percent (15 of 25) from the field in the second half and poured in seven more triples after the break to pull away.
The Bulldogs' 16 3-pointers on the night set a Battle 4 Atlantis record while McDermott's seven triples also set a new B4A high mark.
Middle Tennessee closes out their stay in the Bahamas on Friday as they face Stanford at 6:00 p.m. CT on ESPNU.
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
