Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Saturday, January 18
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
5:00 PM
Middle Tennessee
-126,42 CUSA
72
vs
56
FIU
-413,15 CUSA
1
2
3
4
F
FIU
10
19
15
12
56
Middle Tennessee
16
22
19
15
72
Team Stats
FIU
MT
FG%
.392
.417
3FG%
.400
.345
FT%
.833
.750
RB
34
35
TO
24
16
STL
11
13
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
19
FGM
7
3FGM
5
FTM
0
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballFive in double figures as Lady Raiders defeat FIU
1/18/2020 7:32:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Sutton leads way with 19
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — A good offensive showing Thursday against Florida Atlantic carried over to Saturday in a win for Middle Tennessee.
With the FIU Panthers (4-13, 1-5) visiting the Murphy Center, the Lady Raiders (12-6, 4-2) had five players reach double-figure scoring and won 72-56. It was their 13th straight victory against FIU, making them 30-9 in the series all-time.
"Both teams played hard … and I'm proud of our players," MT Head Coach Rick Insell said. "They got another win in the conference, and anytime you can get a win in this conference, you have to be happy."
Several Lady Raiders left Thursday night's 81-66 win with a hot shooting hand. Four scored in double figures: sophomores Anastasia Hayes and Taylor Sutton and freshmen Aislynn Hayes and Courtney Whitson, who had a career night with 19 points and five made 3-pointers.
The underclassmen's hot hands carried over into Saturday, as all four scored in double digits again to go with a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double from senior Charity Savage. Sutton led the way on the night with 19 points, including five made triples, while Anastasia Hayes had 15 points, six rebounds and four steals. Whitson had 11 points and four rebounds, and Aislynn Hayes added 11 points and six assists.
In the two home victories this week, the four underclassmen shot 40 percent from the field (42-104) and 36 percent from distance (20-55), combining for 126 of their team's 153 points.
"We've just kept our head in it and learned to not get so down on ourselves when we miss shots early on," Sutton said. "We've just kept that in our head recently.
"I think it was good to have these two games under our belt going into the next few games. It was big for our confidence."
A chunk of Middle Tennessee's offense Saturday came thanks to the opposing team.
The Panthers, which went into the game as one of the worst offensive teams in the country ranking 339th out of 348 teams in points per game (53.1), turned the ball over 24 times, leading to 26 Lady Raider points. It was MT's second game in a row forcing 24 cough ups.
FIU's inability to hold onto the ball, plus a 2 for 11 start from the field in the first quarter, led to a quick hole the road team couldn't get out of. The Lady Raiders turned a six-point advantage at the end of the first quarter into a 38-29 at the half.
"Our press really gets us going sometimes," Anastasia Hayes said. "We work on getting into passing lanes a lot in practice. Getting into passing lanes and finishing is really big for us and gives us a lot of momentum."
The balanced scoring and stingy defense will have to travel with Middle Tennessee next week. It will be at LA Tech on Thursday before heading to Southern Miss on Saturday.
"Anytime you can win two conference games in a week, that's big," Insell said. "The schedule gets a little tougher for us. … We have four big games in a row that we can look to.
"Right now, we have to take care of this coming week. We have classes starting back on Tuesday, then we'll head down to LA Tech on Wednesday."
With the FIU Panthers (4-13, 1-5) visiting the Murphy Center, the Lady Raiders (12-6, 4-2) had five players reach double-figure scoring and won 72-56. It was their 13th straight victory against FIU, making them 30-9 in the series all-time.
"Both teams played hard … and I'm proud of our players," MT Head Coach Rick Insell said. "They got another win in the conference, and anytime you can get a win in this conference, you have to be happy."
Several Lady Raiders left Thursday night's 81-66 win with a hot shooting hand. Four scored in double figures: sophomores Anastasia Hayes and Taylor Sutton and freshmen Aislynn Hayes and Courtney Whitson, who had a career night with 19 points and five made 3-pointers.
The underclassmen's hot hands carried over into Saturday, as all four scored in double digits again to go with a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double from senior Charity Savage. Sutton led the way on the night with 19 points, including five made triples, while Anastasia Hayes had 15 points, six rebounds and four steals. Whitson had 11 points and four rebounds, and Aislynn Hayes added 11 points and six assists.
In the two home victories this week, the four underclassmen shot 40 percent from the field (42-104) and 36 percent from distance (20-55), combining for 126 of their team's 153 points.
"We've just kept our head in it and learned to not get so down on ourselves when we miss shots early on," Sutton said. "We've just kept that in our head recently.
"I think it was good to have these two games under our belt going into the next few games. It was big for our confidence."
A chunk of Middle Tennessee's offense Saturday came thanks to the opposing team.
The Panthers, which went into the game as one of the worst offensive teams in the country ranking 339th out of 348 teams in points per game (53.1), turned the ball over 24 times, leading to 26 Lady Raider points. It was MT's second game in a row forcing 24 cough ups.
FIU's inability to hold onto the ball, plus a 2 for 11 start from the field in the first quarter, led to a quick hole the road team couldn't get out of. The Lady Raiders turned a six-point advantage at the end of the first quarter into a 38-29 at the half.
"Our press really gets us going sometimes," Anastasia Hayes said. "We work on getting into passing lanes a lot in practice. Getting into passing lanes and finishing is really big for us and gives us a lot of momentum."
The balanced scoring and stingy defense will have to travel with Middle Tennessee next week. It will be at LA Tech on Thursday before heading to Southern Miss on Saturday.
"Anytime you can win two conference games in a week, that's big," Insell said. "The schedule gets a little tougher for us. … We have four big games in a row that we can look to.
"Right now, we have to take care of this coming week. We have classes starting back on Tuesday, then we'll head down to LA Tech on Wednesday."
Facility tour – Stephen and Denise Smith Student-Athlete Performance Center
Wednesday, July 30
Rick Insell Conference USA Hall of Fame Announcement
Wednesday, July 09
2025 Blue Raider Blitz Media Panel
Thursday, July 03
MTSU Women's Basketball Coach Rick Insell interview at 2025 Blue Raider Blitz
Monday, June 30
