Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Friday, March 11
Frisco, TX
2:00 PM
Middle Tennessee
98
vs
102
UAB
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
Blue Raiders fall to UAB in C-USA semifinal, triple OT heartbreaker
3/11/2022 7:14:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Five Blue Raiders finish the game in double figures
FRISCO, Texas — Middle Tennessee men's basketball fought and fought and fought but fell just short in a heartbreaker in the Conference USA Tournament semifinals, falling in triple overtime to UAB 102-98.
Tied at 62-62 at the end of regulation, Middle Tennessee (23-10, 13-5 C-USA) had multiple stretches to put itself in position to win in each of the first two overtimes, but UAB (26-7, 14-4 C-USA) had a few more runs than the Blue Raiders had in the tank down the stretch, including a 10–0 run near the start of triple overtime to take an eight-point lead with 2:44 to play.
"I told the team I was really proud of their toughness, their effort," head coach Nick McDevitt said. "We played hard. I feel for them, a lot of guys in the locker room are really hurting. They did what they were asked, they did it well, but you don't get the result. I told our guys, 'We played hard. We played good. I thought you deserved to win. But that doesn't mean UAB didn't deserve to win. They played hard. They played good.'"
Five Blue Raiders finished the game in double digits scoring, led by 25 points from DeAndre Dishman, who was a beast in the paint, battling, as he always has, with bigger forwards all night and getting the better of them on both ends for most of the game. The veteran forward also had nine rebounds.
Donovan Sims led all Blue Raiders in minutes played, playing all but 86 seconds on the floor for MT tonight, scoring 21 points. The fifth-year senior hit his first three shots of the game to give Middle a spark early in the first half. Sims also finished with nine rebounds and led the team with two steals.
Camryn Weston added 17 points off the bench, hauled in nine rebounds and made four assists while playing over 40 minutes on the night. Eli Lawrence was also key, serving as primary defender on Jordan Walker for the majority of the game while scoring 15 points and grabbing three boards.
"Any time you're going to be without a sixth year senior, your leading scorer in conference tournament play," McDevitt said, "a lot of guys have got to do a lot of things well to take a team that good into triple overtime."
Teafale Lenard was also excellent starting in place of the injured Josh Jefferson, posting 13 points and tying a career high with four blocks. Justin Bufford played a career-high 39 minutes, serving as a key defensive cog and garbage man, scoring seven points and grabbing five rebounds.
"He keeps making effort plays," McDevitt said of Bufford. "He's a talk leader on the floor, does the little things. He gets other guys open with the way he cuts and screens on offense. He just does what he's supposed to do. (He) plays to his role, plays to his strengths."
Friday was the first time since the 1992-93 season that Middle Tennessee played in back-to-back overtime games. The Blue Raiders will return home with a 23-10 record, tied for the seventh most wins in a season in program history.
"I'm excited about the future of our team and program," McDevitt said. "A lot of guys have gotten a lot of experience down here to see what it takes to win at this level. We've had a great year, and we were just a couple of great possessions away from playing for the one that really matters."
Game Notes
Tied at 62-62 at the end of regulation, Middle Tennessee (23-10, 13-5 C-USA) had multiple stretches to put itself in position to win in each of the first two overtimes, but UAB (26-7, 14-4 C-USA) had a few more runs than the Blue Raiders had in the tank down the stretch, including a 10–0 run near the start of triple overtime to take an eight-point lead with 2:44 to play.
"I told the team I was really proud of their toughness, their effort," head coach Nick McDevitt said. "We played hard. I feel for them, a lot of guys in the locker room are really hurting. They did what they were asked, they did it well, but you don't get the result. I told our guys, 'We played hard. We played good. I thought you deserved to win. But that doesn't mean UAB didn't deserve to win. They played hard. They played good.'"
Five Blue Raiders finished the game in double digits scoring, led by 25 points from DeAndre Dishman, who was a beast in the paint, battling, as he always has, with bigger forwards all night and getting the better of them on both ends for most of the game. The veteran forward also had nine rebounds.
Donovan Sims led all Blue Raiders in minutes played, playing all but 86 seconds on the floor for MT tonight, scoring 21 points. The fifth-year senior hit his first three shots of the game to give Middle a spark early in the first half. Sims also finished with nine rebounds and led the team with two steals.
Camryn Weston added 17 points off the bench, hauled in nine rebounds and made four assists while playing over 40 minutes on the night. Eli Lawrence was also key, serving as primary defender on Jordan Walker for the majority of the game while scoring 15 points and grabbing three boards.
"Any time you're going to be without a sixth year senior, your leading scorer in conference tournament play," McDevitt said, "a lot of guys have got to do a lot of things well to take a team that good into triple overtime."
Teafale Lenard was also excellent starting in place of the injured Josh Jefferson, posting 13 points and tying a career high with four blocks. Justin Bufford played a career-high 39 minutes, serving as a key defensive cog and garbage man, scoring seven points and grabbing five rebounds.
"He keeps making effort plays," McDevitt said of Bufford. "He's a talk leader on the floor, does the little things. He gets other guys open with the way he cuts and screens on offense. He just does what he's supposed to do. (He) plays to his role, plays to his strengths."
Friday was the first time since the 1992-93 season that Middle Tennessee played in back-to-back overtime games. The Blue Raiders will return home with a 23-10 record, tied for the seventh most wins in a season in program history.
"I'm excited about the future of our team and program," McDevitt said. "A lot of guys have gotten a lot of experience down here to see what it takes to win at this level. We've had a great year, and we were just a couple of great possessions away from playing for the one that really matters."
Game Notes
- Dishman's 25 points were a career high.
- Lenard tied a career high with four blocks, moving into a tie for sixth place in Blue Raider history with 48 on the season.
- MT fell to 3-2 in games played the day after an overtime game.
- The Blue Raiders are now 3-6 all-time in multiple-overtime games.
- After winning five tipoffs during the regular season, Middle Tennessee won four of six tips in the C-USA Tournament.
- Sims tied a career high with nine rebounds.
- Bufford's 39 minutes were a personal best.
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