Middle Tennesee State University Athletics
Saturday, February 3
Bowling Green, Ky.
7 PM
Middle Tennessee
8-14,2-5CUSA
65
at
88
WKU
15-7,4-4CUSA
1
2
F
Middle Tenn.
38
27
65
Western Ky.
38
50
88
Blue Raiders go cold in second half in Bowling Green
2/3/2024 9:51:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Western Kentucky dominated the second half Saturday in an 88-65 win over Middle Tennessee at E. A. Diddle Arena. Jalen Jordan led the Blue Raiders with a season-high 22 points.
A 21-6 Hilltopper (15-7, 4-4 Conference USA) run broke a halftime tie and gave WKU the lead for good. Don McHenry scored 17 points in the first five minutes and 15 seconds of the half. The Blue Raiders (8-14, 2-5) were 8-for-20 from 3-point range in the first half but were 3-for-22 from long range in the second half.
Jordan was 6-for-10 from 3-point range and 4-of-5 from the free throw line Saturday for a new season high. Jestin Porter added 18 points, seven rebounds and a team-high four assists. Jared Coleman-Jones led the Blue Raiders with nine rebounds.
By the Numbers
30: WKU outscored MTSU 46-16 in the paint Saturday.
40: MTSU shot 40 percent from 3-point range in the first half compared to 13.6 percent in the second.
4: Justin Bufford tied a career high with four blocked shots.
Blue Raider Notes
"I thought we did so many good things in the first half, and we were 8-for-20 from three in the first half. It wasn't that we took 20 threes [in the second half]. It was how we were getting them. We chart what we call 'mid-line crosses.' If you split the floor in half from rim to rim, and you move the ball from side to side, you make defensive players move from the strong side of the floor to the weak side, strong side back to the weak side… In the first half we [mad multiple mid-line crosses] 12 times. In the second half, we did that twice."
Up Next
MTSU is back on the road for the first of a two-game east coast swing Thursday at Liberty. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Follow Middle Tennessee Men's Basketball on social media on Facebook (//MTMensBasketball), Twitter (@MT_MBB) and Instagram (@mt_mbb).
A 21-6 Hilltopper (15-7, 4-4 Conference USA) run broke a halftime tie and gave WKU the lead for good. Don McHenry scored 17 points in the first five minutes and 15 seconds of the half. The Blue Raiders (8-14, 2-5) were 8-for-20 from 3-point range in the first half but were 3-for-22 from long range in the second half.
Jordan was 6-for-10 from 3-point range and 4-of-5 from the free throw line Saturday for a new season high. Jestin Porter added 18 points, seven rebounds and a team-high four assists. Jared Coleman-Jones led the Blue Raiders with nine rebounds.
By the Numbers
30: WKU outscored MTSU 46-16 in the paint Saturday.
40: MTSU shot 40 percent from 3-point range in the first half compared to 13.6 percent in the second.
4: Justin Bufford tied a career high with four blocked shots.
Blue Raider Notes
- Jordan recorded the fourth 20-point game of his Blue Raider career.
- Bufford moved into ninth place on the MTSU career blocks list, bringing his total to 65.
- Coleman-Jones has seven or more rebounds in eight straight games.
"I thought we did so many good things in the first half, and we were 8-for-20 from three in the first half. It wasn't that we took 20 threes [in the second half]. It was how we were getting them. We chart what we call 'mid-line crosses.' If you split the floor in half from rim to rim, and you move the ball from side to side, you make defensive players move from the strong side of the floor to the weak side, strong side back to the weak side… In the first half we [mad multiple mid-line crosses] 12 times. In the second half, we did that twice."
Up Next
MTSU is back on the road for the first of a two-game east coast swing Thursday at Liberty. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Follow Middle Tennessee Men's Basketball on social media on Facebook (//MTMensBasketball), Twitter (@MT_MBB) and Instagram (@mt_mbb).
Team Stats
MTSU
WestKy
FG%
.333
.500
3FG%
.262
.421
FT%
.833
.818
RB
34
38
TO
14
9
STL
2
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
22
FGM
6
3FGM
6
FTM
4
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
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