Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Monday, December 23
Knoxville, TN
6 p.m.
Middle Tennessee
at
Tennessee
Blue Raiders to close out non-conference at No. 1 Tennessee
12/22/2024 6:59:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – The Middle Tennessee men's basketball program is set to close out its non-conference slate with its toughest challenge yet – the top-ranked Tennessee Volunteers. The in-state rivals will face off December 23 in Knoxville, Tenn., with tip scheduled for 6 p.m. CT. The head-to-head in Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center will be streamed on SEC Network and Blue Raider Network.
Series History
Tennessee leads the all-time series, 9-2.
Middle Tennessee took the last contest between the school with a 71-64 decision on Rocky Top in the 2012 NIT.
The Blue Raiders own a one game winning streak in the series.
Blue Raider Notes
• Monday's matchup will mark just the sixth time that head coach Nick McDevitt has faced off against an active Southeastern Conference program at Middle Tennessee.
• Monday will also mark the first time that the Blue Raiders will go head-to-head with a top ranked team. Middle Tennessee has played No. 2 Memphis (2007) and No. 2 Michigan State (2016).
• Middle Tennessee continued its home dominance in a tough win over Lipscomb, 67-65, Thursday. The Blue Raiders excelled on the glass, outrebounding the Bisons 47-29 and only allowing them to bring in three offensive boards. MTSU also held Lipscomb to 10 points below its average three-point percentage, only sinking four threes on 22 shots.
• Chris Loofe played prep ball at Link Academy (Mo.) while Cameron Carr, Ben Linnemeyer and Cade Phillips played on Link's high school squad.
• Nick McDevitt and Tennessee Head Coach Rick Barnes both grew up in Western North Carolina. McDevitt was raised in Marshall, N.C., while Barnes lived in Hickory, N.C. The towns are less than a two hour drive from each other.
• On Thursday night, Essam Mostafa became one of just five active student-athletes to amass 1,000 career rebounds, earning ten on the night for his 45th double-double of his career.
• The Blue Raiders rank second in the country in three-point percentage defense, only allowing opponents to score on 24.4 percent of their three-point shots, good for the conference lead.
• With an average of 3.75 offensive rebounds per game, Essam Mostafa is ranked 10th in the nation in offensive boards per game, first in the conference
• Scoring 970 points ten games into the season, the 2024-25 Blue Raiders are the highest scoring roster of any Middle Tennessee team coached by Nick McDevitt.
• The Blue Raiders have spread their scoring efforts across the roster, with six different players leading the team in scoring in the 12 games played thus far.
• With a 9-3 record thus far, the Blue Raiders are off to their best start since the 2021-22 season, matching the best start for head coach Nick McDevitt at Middle Tennessee.
• The Blue Raiders have outscored opponents 970-842 in the opening 12 games of the 2024-25 campaign.
Volunteer Notes
• Tennessee is among just four undefeated Division I schools— three are in the SEC—alongside Drake, Florida and Oklahoma. Only UT is also unbeaten in women's basketball
• Over his 10-year tenure at UT, Barnes is 33-6 (.846) against in- state foes, including 16-1 (.941) in the last 17 such games. He has victories over nine different Volunteer State foes, with Belmont and Middle Tennessee State the only two he has not played or defeated
• In the past four years (2021-25), Tennessee has and SEC-best 21 AP top-25 wins, good for co- fourth nationally, alongside Purdue. It is behind just Kansas (24), Connecticut (23) and Iowa State (22). Only Marquette (19) is even within two of the Volunteers, while the closest SEC school is three behind (Alabama with 18).
• Tennessee, through 12/20/24, ranks first nationally in KenPom adjusted defensive efficiency (88.4), just ahead of second-place Duke (88.6).
• In 10 seasons under head coach Rick Barnes, Tennessee is 128-24 (.842) at Food City Center. Twice during the Barnes era, UT has gone undefeated at home: 18-0 in 2018-19 and 16-0 in 2021-22.
Series History
Tennessee leads the all-time series, 9-2.
Middle Tennessee took the last contest between the school with a 71-64 decision on Rocky Top in the 2012 NIT.
The Blue Raiders own a one game winning streak in the series.
Blue Raider Notes
• Monday's matchup will mark just the sixth time that head coach Nick McDevitt has faced off against an active Southeastern Conference program at Middle Tennessee.
• Monday will also mark the first time that the Blue Raiders will go head-to-head with a top ranked team. Middle Tennessee has played No. 2 Memphis (2007) and No. 2 Michigan State (2016).
• Middle Tennessee continued its home dominance in a tough win over Lipscomb, 67-65, Thursday. The Blue Raiders excelled on the glass, outrebounding the Bisons 47-29 and only allowing them to bring in three offensive boards. MTSU also held Lipscomb to 10 points below its average three-point percentage, only sinking four threes on 22 shots.
• Chris Loofe played prep ball at Link Academy (Mo.) while Cameron Carr, Ben Linnemeyer and Cade Phillips played on Link's high school squad.
• Nick McDevitt and Tennessee Head Coach Rick Barnes both grew up in Western North Carolina. McDevitt was raised in Marshall, N.C., while Barnes lived in Hickory, N.C. The towns are less than a two hour drive from each other.
• On Thursday night, Essam Mostafa became one of just five active student-athletes to amass 1,000 career rebounds, earning ten on the night for his 45th double-double of his career.
• The Blue Raiders rank second in the country in three-point percentage defense, only allowing opponents to score on 24.4 percent of their three-point shots, good for the conference lead.
• With an average of 3.75 offensive rebounds per game, Essam Mostafa is ranked 10th in the nation in offensive boards per game, first in the conference
• Scoring 970 points ten games into the season, the 2024-25 Blue Raiders are the highest scoring roster of any Middle Tennessee team coached by Nick McDevitt.
• The Blue Raiders have spread their scoring efforts across the roster, with six different players leading the team in scoring in the 12 games played thus far.
• With a 9-3 record thus far, the Blue Raiders are off to their best start since the 2021-22 season, matching the best start for head coach Nick McDevitt at Middle Tennessee.
• The Blue Raiders have outscored opponents 970-842 in the opening 12 games of the 2024-25 campaign.
Volunteer Notes
• Tennessee is among just four undefeated Division I schools— three are in the SEC—alongside Drake, Florida and Oklahoma. Only UT is also unbeaten in women's basketball
• Over his 10-year tenure at UT, Barnes is 33-6 (.846) against in- state foes, including 16-1 (.941) in the last 17 such games. He has victories over nine different Volunteer State foes, with Belmont and Middle Tennessee State the only two he has not played or defeated
• In the past four years (2021-25), Tennessee has and SEC-best 21 AP top-25 wins, good for co- fourth nationally, alongside Purdue. It is behind just Kansas (24), Connecticut (23) and Iowa State (22). Only Marquette (19) is even within two of the Volunteers, while the closest SEC school is three behind (Alabama with 18).
• Tennessee, through 12/20/24, ranks first nationally in KenPom adjusted defensive efficiency (88.4), just ahead of second-place Duke (88.6).
• In 10 seasons under head coach Rick Barnes, Tennessee is 128-24 (.842) at Food City Center. Twice during the Barnes era, UT has gone undefeated at home: 18-0 in 2018-19 and 16-0 in 2021-22.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball2025 MTSU Basketball tickets on sale now - October 1st
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