Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Middle Tennessee
25-10
Boston University
22-13
Team Stats
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
Blue Raiders blow past Boston U to advance to CBI Semifinals
3/21/2022 8:54:00 PM | Men's Basketball
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Middle Tennessee and Boston University traded baskets for the first 12 minutes of Monday night's quarterfinal contest in the 2022 Roman College Basketball Invitational, but a 10-0 run gave the Blue Raiders some distance, and they never looked back in a 76-46 win at the Ocean Center. Middle Tennessee clamped down defensively while locking in on the offensive end in a wire-to-wire win.
"We were running good offense, but so were they," head coach Nick McDevitt said of the opening minutes of the game. "I said to our team, 'At some point, one of us is going to have to start guarding a little bit better. It's either going to be us, or it's going to be them.' Our offense continued, but then the defense started to help by getting stops."
Boston started the game 7-for-14 from the floor, but MT held the Terriers to just 2-for-13 the rest of the first half. After leading 21-19 at the under-eight media timeout, the Blue Raiders extended their lead to 38-24 with a balanced attack.
At halftime, all but one active Blue Raider had scored at least two points. That last player – Tyler Millin – scored the first points of the second half and ended the game with seven.
MT continued its onslaught in the second half, shooting 15-of-23 – a .652 shooting percentage – from the floor over the final 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, MT held the Terriers to 22 points on 8-for-26 shooting (.308) in the second half, forcing six turnovers while Teafale Lenard, Jr., recorded three of his four blocked shots. Boston finished the game just 5-for-25 from 3-point range.
For the game, the Blue Raiders shot .556 from the floor and .417 from 3-point range.
Lenard led all Middle Tennessee players in scoring with 14, a new career high for the freshman. Joining Lenard in double figures were Donovan Sims (13), DeAndre Dishman (12) and Elias King (12). King's 12 points were a season high.
Dishman and Sims led MT with six rebounds each, while Sims' six assists were a game high.
The Blue Raiders advance to the semifinal round at 8 p.m. CT Tuesday on ESPN2. They await the winner of Monday night's game between Ohio and Abilene Christian.
Game Notes
- The Blue Raiders' 25 wins on the season are tied for the fourth-most in a season in program history.
- Middle Tennessee advances to the semifinal of a postseason tournament for the first time in program history.
- The 30-point margin of victory was MT's largest ever in a postseason game.
- Middle Tennessee claimed its largest margin of victory over a Division I opponent since defeating UTEP 81-50 on January 27, 2018.
- Lenard tied a career high with his four blocks on the night.
- Sims' six assists tied his season high.
- Dishman enters Tuesday's game needing just eight points to reach 1,000 for his career.
- Boston was the seventh opponent MT faced for the first time ever in 2021-22. Tuesday's game will be an opportunity for the Blue Raiders to defeat a team they have never beaten. MT is 0-1 all-time against Abilene Christian and 0-3 against Ohio.
