Men’s Basketball looks to rebound against FAU, FIU

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee was 0-4 at the start of the Conference USA slate last season before winning both games in the third week of league play, and the Blue Raiders are hoping for similar results this weekend with two games in Florida.

Game 18: Middle Tennessee (4-13, 0-4 C-USA) at Florida Atlantic (11-6, 3-1 C-USA)
» Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020 – 6:00 p.m. CST
» Abessinio Court at RoofClam.com Arena (2,900) – Boca Raton, Fla.

Game 19: Middle Tennessee at FIU (11-6, 2-2 C-USA)
» Saturday, Jan. 18, 2020 – 6:00 p.m. CST
» Ocean Bank Convocation Center (5,000) – Miami, Fla.

About the Blue Raiders
» Middle Tennessee's losing streak stretched to eight games after a pair of home losses last week.
» MT is worst in C-USA in first half point differential (-157) but is second in the league in second half point differential (79).
» C.J. Jones and Donovan Sims have started all 17 games of the 2019-20 season.
» Jones is fifth in C-USA in points per game (16.4) and third in C-USA in total field goals made (102).
» Sharing the ball seems to be a strong point for MT so far this year, as the Blue Raiders are third in C-USA in assists (240).
» Antonio Green has continued to shoot from beyond the arc, as he is third in C-USA in 3-point field goals attempted (121).
» Senior forward Reggie Scurry leads his team in rebounds (5.7 per game) and field goal percentage (56.7%).

All-Time vs. Florida Atlantic
» Thursday's game at Florida Atlantic will be the 25th meeting between the two programs.
» MT holds an overall series lead of 19-5 and has won the last seven road games against the Owls.

Scouting the Owls
» Florida Atlantic and MT have just one common opponent so far this year: both teams lost to St. Bonaventure in non-conference play.
» More importantly, the Owls have started C-USA play with wins over UTSA, UTEP and Rice before falling on Saturday at North Texas.
» FAU is led in scoring by Lincoln Memorial transfer Cornelius Taylor (11.3 points per game) and fellow 6-foot guard Michael Forrest (10.1 points per game).
» Individually, the only players to crack the top 10 in any C-USA category are Taylor and Forrest. Taylor is eighth in 3-point field goals attempted (98), and Forrest is eighth in 3-pointers made (34).
» As a team, the Owls are second in the conference in turnover margin (1.8).
» FAU's 3-point shooting could be a challenge the Blue Raiders will need to overcome in order to keep the Owls from improving to 10-1 in its own building this season.

All-Time vs. FIU
» Saturday's game at FIU will be the 40th meeting between the two programs.
» MT has a 30-9 lead in the series and has won eight of the last nine games against the Panthers in Miami.

Scouting the Panthers
» FIU has shown it has the potential to be one of Conference USA's frontrunners this season.
» The Panthers enter the week with an 11-6 record overall but are just 2-2 in C-USA play after losses at North Texas and Rice last week.
» As a team the Panthers lead C-USA in nine stat categories. Individually, six FIU players are the best in a C-USA stat category, including Osasumwen Osaghae, who is on track to win a statistical national championship with 69 total blocks (4.06 per game).
» FIU's team statistics that are towards the top of the league include blocks, assists, scoring offense and steals.
» In addition to the blocked shots, Osaghae also leads C-USA in rebounds (8.4 per game) and double-doubles (4).
» 6-foot-1 sophomore guard Antonio Daye, Jr. leads C-USA in assists per game with 5.0 to go with 9.5 points per game.
» 6-foot-6 forward Devon Andrews provides matchup problems for all FIU opponents, and he is currently third in C-USA with 16.8 points per game.

Last Time Out
» MT lost its first two Conference USA home games of the season last week, first dropping a four-point game against Marshall before falling to rival Western Kentucky on Saturday night.
» C.J. Jones poured in 21 points, and Donovan Sims tacked on 18 against the Thundering Herd in what was arguably the most complete game the Blue Raiders have put together so far this season.
» Against the Hilltoppers, MT came out flat, and WKU took advantage. Despite winning the second half, the Blue Raiders dropped a 13-point decision on Saturday night.

Next Time Out
» MT will be back at Murphy Center for a pair of games next week.
» The Blue Raiders will first host Louisiana Tech on Thursday, Jan. 23 at 6:30 p.m.
» Then, MT will hit the floor once again to take on Southern Miss on Saturday, Jan. 25 at 5 p.m.
» Both games can be streamed on ESPN+.

For all the latest information on Middle Tennessee Men's Basketball, follow the #BlueRaiders on Facebook (@MTMensBasketball), Twitter (@MT_MBB) and Instagram (MT_MBB).

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Players Mentioned

Antonio Green

C.J. Jones

Reggie Scurry

Donovan Sims

Middle Tennessee State University Athletics