Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Middle Tennessee
-41,00 CUSA
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2-4,0-0MAAC
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Strong second half sends Blue Raiders to championship game
11/23/2021 2:37:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Cancun, Mexico – A tremendous second-half effort helped Middle Tennessee (4-1) overcome a frigid first half Tuesday against Rider (2-4) in a 60-54 victory in the Cancun Challenge at the Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya. The win puts the Blue Raiders through to the championship game of the Mayan Division against the winner of Tuesday's game between Bucknell and Mercer.
"We didn't shoot it very well, but we didn't – particularly in the second half – let that affect our defensive effort," head coach Nick McDevitt said. "We kept getting stops and finding a way to score the ball even though we weren't shooting it well… I thought our effort was there. The guys were connected. The guys that started the second half brought great energy. The guys that didn't were great on the bench. We just sounded, looked, acted like a better, tougher team in the second half."
Middle Tennessee jumped out to a 13-2 lead in the first 5 minutes and 41 seconds, forcing five Bronc turnovers in that span. MT went cold for the remainder of the first half, however, going 4-for-27 from the floor – including 1-for-10 from 3-point range – and 2-for-6 from the free throw line as they were outscored 31-11 over the final 14-plus minutes. Rider took a 33-24 lead into the locker room.
"We started well in the first four or five minutes," McDevitt said. "And then I just thought we looked frazzled. We just got soft in our offensive execution, our rebounding. Our toughness just wasn't there, and they took advantage of it."
The Blue Raiders opened the second half with the same energy they started the game, going on a 9-0 run capped off by Donovan Sims' game-tying 3-pointer from the left wing. Sims and Eli Lawrence combined for all nine points in the second-half outburst.
The contingent of two dozen or so Blue Raider supporters made its presence felt, sounding as loud as 10 times as many in the Hard Rock Convention Center. The overwhelmingly pro-MT crowd combined with the energy of the players themselves to keep the momentum in Middle Tennessee's favor.
The Broncs regained the lead twice more in the second half, but DeAndre Dishman's putback dunk put his team back in the lead for good with 6:28 to play.
Middle Tennessee held Rider to just 21 points in the second half, the fewest it had allowed in any half all season. The Broncs were 7-for-23 from the floor and 1-for-6 from long distance while turning the ball over 11 times. The Blue Raiders outrebounded the Broncs 22-11 in the second half.
Lawrence finished with a game-high 15 points to go along with six rebounds. Camryn Weston added 13 points and five rebounds off the bench. Sims pulled down a season-high seven rebounds in addition to 11 points. Dishman's nine rebounds were the most by a Blue Raider this year.
Game Notes
- - The Blue Raiders snapped a 14-game losing streak away from the Murphy Center and a 14-game losing streak in neutral site games.
- - Dishman's nine rebounds were the most by a Blue Raider this season.
- - The Blue Raiders have held opponents to fewer than 60 points in four out of five games this season
- - Weston's 13 points were a season high
- - MT's pulled down a season-high 43 rebounds
- - Sims scored all 11 of his points in the second half
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