Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Sunday, December 29
Murfreesboro, TN
3:30 PM
Middle Tennessee
-49,00 CUSA
62
vs
89
Rhode Island
8-3,0-0Atlantic
1
2
F
Rhode Island
48
41
89
Middle Tennessee
24
38
62
Team Stats
URI
MT
FG%
.559
.358
3FG%
.412
.355
FT%
.640
.684
RB
39
30
TO
13
21
STL
14
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
22
FGM
5
3FGM
5
FTM
7
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
Rams physical presence too much for Raiders
12/29/2019 6:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee men's basketball closed out 2019 with a disappointing performance against Rhode Island, dropping the contest against one of the Atlantic 10's best by a final score of 89-62.
Sloppy offense against an aggressive Ram defense hindered the Blue Raiders early as eight turnovers in the first eight minutes gave URI 12 points off turnovers and a 21-10 lead at the under 12 media timeout.
Coming off a career-high 26 points last time out, C.J. Jones kept his team in it early, connecting on 3 of his first 4 shots from the field to tally eight of MT's first 14 points.
His efforts alone wouldn't be near enough, however, as the Raiders limped into the locker room with 17 of their season-high 21 turnovers already in the box score.
Donovan Sims started the second half off with a corner triple, his second of the night, to quickly cut into the 48-24 halftime deficit.
The 3-ball made him the first Blue Raider of the afternoon to enter double figures while he finished the contest with a game-high 22 points thanks to five trifectas and a 7 for 10 mark from the charity stripe.
No teammate would join him in double figures the rest of the evening, as the Rams cruised to victory behind a handful of double-digit scorers led by 21 from veteran guard Jeff Dowtin.
The Rams shot 56 percent from the field and 41 percent from three to just 36 percent by the Blue Raiders from the field and from downtown. URI dominated in the paint, collecting 44 of its 89 points down low and outrebounding MT 39-30.
"Congratulations to Rhode Island," Head Coach Nick McDevitt said. "They were the tougher, more aggressive team for most of the night.
"We had way too many turnovers in the first half – I'm not sure I've ever seen 17 in a half – and when you have guards like Fatts Russell and Jeff Dowtin throwing it to 6-8 and 6-9 athletes you're really hard to stop."
With the non-conference portion of Middle Tennessee's 2019-20 schedule now complete, the Blue Raiders turn their attention to the Conference USA opener Thursday at Old Dominion.
Sloppy offense against an aggressive Ram defense hindered the Blue Raiders early as eight turnovers in the first eight minutes gave URI 12 points off turnovers and a 21-10 lead at the under 12 media timeout.
Coming off a career-high 26 points last time out, C.J. Jones kept his team in it early, connecting on 3 of his first 4 shots from the field to tally eight of MT's first 14 points.
His efforts alone wouldn't be near enough, however, as the Raiders limped into the locker room with 17 of their season-high 21 turnovers already in the box score.
Donovan Sims started the second half off with a corner triple, his second of the night, to quickly cut into the 48-24 halftime deficit.
The 3-ball made him the first Blue Raider of the afternoon to enter double figures while he finished the contest with a game-high 22 points thanks to five trifectas and a 7 for 10 mark from the charity stripe.
No teammate would join him in double figures the rest of the evening, as the Rams cruised to victory behind a handful of double-digit scorers led by 21 from veteran guard Jeff Dowtin.
The Rams shot 56 percent from the field and 41 percent from three to just 36 percent by the Blue Raiders from the field and from downtown. URI dominated in the paint, collecting 44 of its 89 points down low and outrebounding MT 39-30.
"Congratulations to Rhode Island," Head Coach Nick McDevitt said. "They were the tougher, more aggressive team for most of the night.
"We had way too many turnovers in the first half – I'm not sure I've ever seen 17 in a half – and when you have guards like Fatts Russell and Jeff Dowtin throwing it to 6-8 and 6-9 athletes you're really hard to stop."
With the non-conference portion of Middle Tennessee's 2019-20 schedule now complete, the Blue Raiders turn their attention to the Conference USA opener Thursday at Old Dominion.
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
