Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Saturday, February 8
Murfreesboro, TN
5:00 PM
Middle Tennessee
-619,210 CUSA
83
vs
91
Rice
-1213,48 CUSA
1
2
F
Rice
45
46
91
Middle Tennessee
32
51
83
Team Stats
RICE
MT
FG%
.528
.422
3FG%
.333
.333
FT%
.737
.750
RB
36
35
TO
7
9
STL
4
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
24
FGM
8
3FGM
6
FTM
2
Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
4
FTM
3
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
Raiders fall to hot-shooting Rice
2/8/2020 7:48:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee simply ran into a hot team Saturday night at the Murphy Center.
While sitting towards the bottom of Conference USA in the standings, Rice (12-13, 4-8) went into the night one of the hottest teams in the league. The Blue Raiders (6-19, 2-10) finally cooled the Owls off in the second half but couldn't complete a comeback, falling 91-83.
"Obviously, they're playing really well," MT head coach Nick McDevitt said. "I didn't think we did a very good job of guarding them, and I think it kind of came down to that.
"When you score 83 points, you're supposed to win games. We just didn't guard the ball."
Rice had won two games in a row before Saturday using an unusually hot-shooting offense.
The Owls only shoot the ball at a 43.3% clip, good for 10th in C-USA, but in wins against North Texas and UAB their last two games, they hit 60 of 105 attempts, good for 57%.
Those hot hands carried over to the first half Saturday, as Rice buried 17 of 27 field goal attempts (63%) in the first 10 minutes and built a double-digit lead early.
"There wasn't a lot of complicated action in what they do, but they gave us trouble with their starting lineup," McDevitt said. "They start two 6-foot-8 guys, but they're perimeter-oriented. … There's obviously a mismatch at the four and the five, where our posts have to guard the perimeter but we have to make their guys really defend at the bucket."
The Blue Raiders finally found their footing defensively in the second half, limiting Rice to a much lower 42.3% shooting, and the scoreboard started to flip.
After a 12-3 run over three minutes in the middle of the half, MT cut the Owls' advantage all the way to five and got the crowd back into it.
"Once we got to the second half, we knew our reads a little more and where to go and where not to go on offense," junior C.J. Jones said. "It was better in the second half."
Some foul trouble hampered Middle Tennessee once it climbed out of the hole, and the blue and white could only cut Rice's lead down to four before the visitors recovered.
The Blue Raiders committed 19 fouls in the second half alone and gave the Owls 38 free-throw attempts in the game, of which they hit 28. They were 22 of 29 after halftime.
"There was a stretch where there were 13 foul calls total in the first four or five minutes in the second half," McDevitt said. "Just a lot of whistles in both directions."
Jones led the way in the scoring column for MT with 24 points on 8 of 16 shooting, including 6 of 13 from 3-point range. Senior Antonio Green had 19 points, 17 in the second half, and junior Jo'Vontae Millner finished with his second double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds, eight coming on the offensive end.
Two games remain for Middle Tennessee before it heads into C-USA bonus play. Both will be against UAB, in Birmingham, Alabama Feb. 12 and at the Murphy Center Feb. 15.
"There are six games left in league play, and they're all big," McDevitt said. "Everybody is juggling for position … and we have to find a way to get on the right side of the scoreboard."
While sitting towards the bottom of Conference USA in the standings, Rice (12-13, 4-8) went into the night one of the hottest teams in the league. The Blue Raiders (6-19, 2-10) finally cooled the Owls off in the second half but couldn't complete a comeback, falling 91-83.
"Obviously, they're playing really well," MT head coach Nick McDevitt said. "I didn't think we did a very good job of guarding them, and I think it kind of came down to that.
"When you score 83 points, you're supposed to win games. We just didn't guard the ball."
Rice had won two games in a row before Saturday using an unusually hot-shooting offense.
The Owls only shoot the ball at a 43.3% clip, good for 10th in C-USA, but in wins against North Texas and UAB their last two games, they hit 60 of 105 attempts, good for 57%.
Those hot hands carried over to the first half Saturday, as Rice buried 17 of 27 field goal attempts (63%) in the first 10 minutes and built a double-digit lead early.
"There wasn't a lot of complicated action in what they do, but they gave us trouble with their starting lineup," McDevitt said. "They start two 6-foot-8 guys, but they're perimeter-oriented. … There's obviously a mismatch at the four and the five, where our posts have to guard the perimeter but we have to make their guys really defend at the bucket."
The Blue Raiders finally found their footing defensively in the second half, limiting Rice to a much lower 42.3% shooting, and the scoreboard started to flip.
After a 12-3 run over three minutes in the middle of the half, MT cut the Owls' advantage all the way to five and got the crowd back into it.
"Once we got to the second half, we knew our reads a little more and where to go and where not to go on offense," junior C.J. Jones said. "It was better in the second half."
Some foul trouble hampered Middle Tennessee once it climbed out of the hole, and the blue and white could only cut Rice's lead down to four before the visitors recovered.
The Blue Raiders committed 19 fouls in the second half alone and gave the Owls 38 free-throw attempts in the game, of which they hit 28. They were 22 of 29 after halftime.
"There was a stretch where there were 13 foul calls total in the first four or five minutes in the second half," McDevitt said. "Just a lot of whistles in both directions."
Jones led the way in the scoring column for MT with 24 points on 8 of 16 shooting, including 6 of 13 from 3-point range. Senior Antonio Green had 19 points, 17 in the second half, and junior Jo'Vontae Millner finished with his second double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds, eight coming on the offensive end.
Two games remain for Middle Tennessee before it heads into C-USA bonus play. Both will be against UAB, in Birmingham, Alabama Feb. 12 and at the Murphy Center Feb. 15.
"There are six games left in league play, and they're all big," McDevitt said. "Everybody is juggling for position … and we have to find a way to get on the right side of the scoreboard."
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
