Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Sunday, December 30
Kingston, RI
4:00 PM
Middle Tennessee
60
at
72
Rhode Island
1
2
F
Middle Tenn.
27
33
60
Rhode Island
29
43
72
Team Stats
M-419
M-572
FG%
.383
.421
3FG%
.429
.333
FT%
.455
.842
RB
35
39
TO
16
14
STL
9
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
26
FGM
10
3FGM
5
FTM
1
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
6
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Raiders fight throughout in road loss at Rhody
12/30/2018 6:51:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Green pours in 26 to lead MT
KINGSTON, R.I. – Middle Tennessee came out firing on all cylinders in their non-conference finale, exhibiting great defense and shooting at a high level early on before a lack of both down the stretch led to a 12-point loss at the hands of the Rhode Island Rams.
"I thought our guys did a lot of really nice things on both sides of the ball tonight," Head Coach Nick McDevitt said. "We executed very well at times and I thought our zone gave them trouble in the first half to make it a competitive contest."
Junior Antonio Green led all scorers on the evening with 26 points on 10 of 19 shooting that included a 5 of 9 mark from beyond the arc while sophomore Donovan Sims tacked on 15 points with a 3 for 4 mark from downtown and collected six rebounds against the Rams.
"Antonio and Donovan were big offensively tonight, but I thought they were also really good defensively, especially early on," McDevitt commented. "Antonio had five of our 14 deflections in the first half and that translated over to the offensive end."
In what was perhaps their best half of the season, the Blue Raiders held the Rams to their third-lowest first half output of the season at just 29 points while a 6 of 8 mark from 3-point range before the break buoyed MT.
The Raiders looked as strong on the defensive end as they have so far in 2018 and forced eight Ram turnovers before the break while outrebounding URI 18-15 and allowing the Rams to connect on just four of 12 attempts from beyond the arc.
"We were just connected, talking and helping each other out the best we have all season in the first half," Green added.
Green took the reins early for his team, collecting the first points of the contest with a steal and fast break layup to put MT up 2-0. After Rhode Island took a 5-2 lead MT ran off a 9-0 run with two triples by Green and another by Sims to go back on top 11-5.
Rhody slowly chipped away in the ensuing minutes, tying the contest at 13 and again at 16 before regaining the lead, 18-16, with 12:48 remaining in the half.
At a time when MT has succumbed to sustained runs multiple times this season, the Blue Raiders had a breakthrough Sunday evening as they staved off every attempt the Rams made to stretch the lead out and put the Raiders away early.
Down just five with 7:28 on the clock, Middle Tennessee reeled off a 6-0 run as they kept Rhode Island scoreless for nearly six minutes while closing in on halftime.
A Ram triple 90 seconds out from the break would prove to be the final basket of the first half, sending the teams into their respective locker rooms with the home team holding a 29-27 advantage.
After scoring just one point in the opening 20 minutes, Reggie Scurry wasted no time opening the second half with a quick post move as the soft touch off the glass tied the contest up at 29.
After a basket plus one put Rhode Island up three, Middle Tennessee opened up its second 9-0 run of the evening to take a 38-32 lead, its largest of the game to that point.
As the clock ticked towards 15 minutes Sims' third triple of the contest extended MT's lead to 44-37, but Rhody finally began to open up the run that the Blue Raiders had been denying them all evening as 11 unanswered points made the score 48-44 in favor of URI.
Sims stopped the bleeding with a 1 for 2 trip to the free throw line before a Scurry layup pulled MT back within one at the 10:29 mark.
Leading scorer Jeff Dowtin knocked down a jumper on the next trip down the floor and it would be all Rhody from that point on as the Ryan Center crowd helped the home team take control in the final 10 minutes of action.
Dowtin's jumper started a 15-0 run that saw Rhode Island blow it open with a game-high 16-point lead and just over seven minutes remaining on the clock.
"Just a couple of segments against high quality teams can really hurt you," McDevitt said. "There were about eight and a half of the 10 4-minute segments that I thought we looked really good tonight.
"We just had about a four minute stretch where we missed some good looks and Rhode Island just had enough firepower to get out in transition and take advantage."
A James Hawthorne layup got MT out of the slump and sparked the offense to collect 13 points in the final seven minutes of the contest, but it was too little, too late as Rhode Island cruised to its seventh win of the season by a final margin of 72-60.
"We played well for a majority of the game and really fought hard," Green added. "We had good effort and I feel like we've been getting better and better each day throughout the non-conference schedule.
With the non-conference schedule behind them, the Blue Raiders now recognize their clean slate and look forward to opening league play Thursday against FIU.
"We had one of the Top 5 toughest non-conference schedules in the country, but now we know it's time to turn the page," Green stated. "We're 0-0 in conference play and it's a new season starting now."
"I thought our guys did a lot of really nice things on both sides of the ball tonight," Head Coach Nick McDevitt said. "We executed very well at times and I thought our zone gave them trouble in the first half to make it a competitive contest."
Junior Antonio Green led all scorers on the evening with 26 points on 10 of 19 shooting that included a 5 of 9 mark from beyond the arc while sophomore Donovan Sims tacked on 15 points with a 3 for 4 mark from downtown and collected six rebounds against the Rams.
"Antonio and Donovan were big offensively tonight, but I thought they were also really good defensively, especially early on," McDevitt commented. "Antonio had five of our 14 deflections in the first half and that translated over to the offensive end."
In what was perhaps their best half of the season, the Blue Raiders held the Rams to their third-lowest first half output of the season at just 29 points while a 6 of 8 mark from 3-point range before the break buoyed MT.
The Raiders looked as strong on the defensive end as they have so far in 2018 and forced eight Ram turnovers before the break while outrebounding URI 18-15 and allowing the Rams to connect on just four of 12 attempts from beyond the arc.
"We were just connected, talking and helping each other out the best we have all season in the first half," Green added.
Green took the reins early for his team, collecting the first points of the contest with a steal and fast break layup to put MT up 2-0. After Rhode Island took a 5-2 lead MT ran off a 9-0 run with two triples by Green and another by Sims to go back on top 11-5.
Rhody slowly chipped away in the ensuing minutes, tying the contest at 13 and again at 16 before regaining the lead, 18-16, with 12:48 remaining in the half.
At a time when MT has succumbed to sustained runs multiple times this season, the Blue Raiders had a breakthrough Sunday evening as they staved off every attempt the Rams made to stretch the lead out and put the Raiders away early.
Down just five with 7:28 on the clock, Middle Tennessee reeled off a 6-0 run as they kept Rhode Island scoreless for nearly six minutes while closing in on halftime.
A Ram triple 90 seconds out from the break would prove to be the final basket of the first half, sending the teams into their respective locker rooms with the home team holding a 29-27 advantage.
After scoring just one point in the opening 20 minutes, Reggie Scurry wasted no time opening the second half with a quick post move as the soft touch off the glass tied the contest up at 29.
After a basket plus one put Rhode Island up three, Middle Tennessee opened up its second 9-0 run of the evening to take a 38-32 lead, its largest of the game to that point.
As the clock ticked towards 15 minutes Sims' third triple of the contest extended MT's lead to 44-37, but Rhody finally began to open up the run that the Blue Raiders had been denying them all evening as 11 unanswered points made the score 48-44 in favor of URI.
Sims stopped the bleeding with a 1 for 2 trip to the free throw line before a Scurry layup pulled MT back within one at the 10:29 mark.
Leading scorer Jeff Dowtin knocked down a jumper on the next trip down the floor and it would be all Rhody from that point on as the Ryan Center crowd helped the home team take control in the final 10 minutes of action.
Dowtin's jumper started a 15-0 run that saw Rhode Island blow it open with a game-high 16-point lead and just over seven minutes remaining on the clock.
"Just a couple of segments against high quality teams can really hurt you," McDevitt said. "There were about eight and a half of the 10 4-minute segments that I thought we looked really good tonight.
"We just had about a four minute stretch where we missed some good looks and Rhode Island just had enough firepower to get out in transition and take advantage."
A James Hawthorne layup got MT out of the slump and sparked the offense to collect 13 points in the final seven minutes of the contest, but it was too little, too late as Rhode Island cruised to its seventh win of the season by a final margin of 72-60.
"We played well for a majority of the game and really fought hard," Green added. "We had good effort and I feel like we've been getting better and better each day throughout the non-conference schedule.
With the non-conference schedule behind them, the Blue Raiders now recognize their clean slate and look forward to opening league play Thursday against FIU.
"We had one of the Top 5 toughest non-conference schedules in the country, but now we know it's time to turn the page," Green stated. "We're 0-0 in conference play and it's a new season starting now."
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
