Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Saturday, March 9
Murfreesboro, TN
7:30 PM
Middle Tennessee
11-20, 8-10
48
vs
47
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UTEP
8-21, 3-15
1
2
F
UTEP
18
29
47
Middle Tennessee
25
23
48
Team Stats
UTEP
MT
FG%
.281
.308
3FG%
.214
.227
FT%
.563
.647
RB
37
45
TO
9
14
STL
6
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
5
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
5
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballRaiders hold on for win on Senior Night
3/9/2019 11:33:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – It was the perfect start to the perfect senior night at Middle Tennessee.
Off the tip, senior crowd favorite and walk-on Chase Miller, getting the first start of his career, drained a 3-pointer from the left wing. Then, two possessions later, fellow senior walk-on Lawrence Mosley hit a mirrored shot from the right wing, putting the Blue Raiders up 6-2.
The made-for-Hollywood moment caused pandemonium on the Middle Tennessee bench, as players and coaches alike jumped and cheered as if the shots came in the last minute of the game, not the first.
The magic would continue from there, as MT (11-20, 8-10) held on late to take down visiting UTEP (8-21, 3-15) in a defensive affair, 48-47.
"The play was called for me, and I knew my teammates would yell at me if I didn't shoot it," Miller said. "I'm going to miss this place more than anything … I couldn't have asked for a better four years. I'm seriously the luckiest person in the world to have been able to enjoy it all."
Middle Tennessee used its senior-night adrenaline to power to an early 11-2 lead, but the Miners kept things close through the remainder of the first half.
The Blue Raiders went to the halftime locker room up 25-18 after some sloppy play that resulted in 17 combined turnovers and 28 percent shooting between the two teams.
"I told our team, I said I kind of liked the way it was going," McDevitt said. "I thought it would show if we had enough toughness to win a game that wasn't very pretty."
As the rough night offensively persisted after the break, the blue and white continued to hold a slim advantage.
The Blue Raiders didn't lead by double digits a single time in the game, but they never trailed and the first tie didn't come until a UTEP 3-pointer knotted things at 44 with 3:32 remaining.
With its back against the wall, MT leaned on its defense to seal the win. It held the visitors scoreless over almost three minutes after the tie, and freshmen Junior Farquhar and Jayce Johnson combined for a jumper and two free throws to push the lead to an insurmountable 48-44.
"It's very interesting down the stretch to have two freshmen make two big ones [on senior night]," McDevitt said. "I'm just really happy for our seniors and our team."
The Blue Raiders limped to 30.8 percent shooting (16-52), including a 5-for-22 night from distance. However, eight of the nine blue-clad men who saw the floor scored, including all four seniors. They also held the Miners to 28.1 percent shooting.
Juniors Antonio Green and Reggie Scurry led the way offensively, Green with 11 points and Scurry nine to go with nine rebounds.
The seniors were anchored by James Hawthorne with five points, 10 rebounds and two blocks, while Gamble and Mosley also had five points apiece. Mosley's were a career high, and he also set a personal best with six boards. Miller had three points.
"I've just enjoyed this process and enjoyed the journey," Mosley said. "The biggest thing is thanking the coaching staff and the players for accepting me as a walk-on and giving me the opportunity to do what I'm doing.
"I came to the WKU game last year, and I was sitting in the stands … and now all the hard work has paid off. You can't script it better than that."
With the regular season concluded, Middle Tennessee will travel next to the Air Force Reserves Conference USA Basketball Championship in Frisco, Texas. It will be the 12 seed and will play fifth-seeded UAB on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. CT.
The Blue Raiders beat the Blazers in back-to-back games on Jan. 30 and Feb. 2.
"We still have our work cut out," Hawthorne said. "UAB is a very good team and gave us fits when we played them. We have a little momentum going into the tournament, so that's a good feeling."
Josh Vardaman is the staff writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @J_Vardaman and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.
Off the tip, senior crowd favorite and walk-on Chase Miller, getting the first start of his career, drained a 3-pointer from the left wing. Then, two possessions later, fellow senior walk-on Lawrence Mosley hit a mirrored shot from the right wing, putting the Blue Raiders up 6-2.
The made-for-Hollywood moment caused pandemonium on the Middle Tennessee bench, as players and coaches alike jumped and cheered as if the shots came in the last minute of the game, not the first.
The magic would continue from there, as MT (11-20, 8-10) held on late to take down visiting UTEP (8-21, 3-15) in a defensive affair, 48-47.
"The play was called for me, and I knew my teammates would yell at me if I didn't shoot it," Miller said. "I'm going to miss this place more than anything … I couldn't have asked for a better four years. I'm seriously the luckiest person in the world to have been able to enjoy it all."
Middle Tennessee used its senior-night adrenaline to power to an early 11-2 lead, but the Miners kept things close through the remainder of the first half.
The Blue Raiders went to the halftime locker room up 25-18 after some sloppy play that resulted in 17 combined turnovers and 28 percent shooting between the two teams.
"I told our team, I said I kind of liked the way it was going," McDevitt said. "I thought it would show if we had enough toughness to win a game that wasn't very pretty."
As the rough night offensively persisted after the break, the blue and white continued to hold a slim advantage.
The Blue Raiders didn't lead by double digits a single time in the game, but they never trailed and the first tie didn't come until a UTEP 3-pointer knotted things at 44 with 3:32 remaining.
With its back against the wall, MT leaned on its defense to seal the win. It held the visitors scoreless over almost three minutes after the tie, and freshmen Junior Farquhar and Jayce Johnson combined for a jumper and two free throws to push the lead to an insurmountable 48-44.
"It's very interesting down the stretch to have two freshmen make two big ones [on senior night]," McDevitt said. "I'm just really happy for our seniors and our team."
The Blue Raiders limped to 30.8 percent shooting (16-52), including a 5-for-22 night from distance. However, eight of the nine blue-clad men who saw the floor scored, including all four seniors. They also held the Miners to 28.1 percent shooting.
Juniors Antonio Green and Reggie Scurry led the way offensively, Green with 11 points and Scurry nine to go with nine rebounds.
The seniors were anchored by James Hawthorne with five points, 10 rebounds and two blocks, while Gamble and Mosley also had five points apiece. Mosley's were a career high, and he also set a personal best with six boards. Miller had three points.
"I've just enjoyed this process and enjoyed the journey," Mosley said. "The biggest thing is thanking the coaching staff and the players for accepting me as a walk-on and giving me the opportunity to do what I'm doing.
"I came to the WKU game last year, and I was sitting in the stands … and now all the hard work has paid off. You can't script it better than that."
With the regular season concluded, Middle Tennessee will travel next to the Air Force Reserves Conference USA Basketball Championship in Frisco, Texas. It will be the 12 seed and will play fifth-seeded UAB on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. CT.
The Blue Raiders beat the Blazers in back-to-back games on Jan. 30 and Feb. 2.
"We still have our work cut out," Hawthorne said. "UAB is a very good team and gave us fits when we played them. We have a little momentum going into the tournament, so that's a good feeling."
Josh Vardaman is the staff writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @J_Vardaman and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.
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
