Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Middle Tennessee
LA Tech
Blue Raiders travel to LA Tech and Sam Houston
1/14/2026 3:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Thursday, Jan. 15 | 6:30 p.m. | Thomas Assembly Center | Ruston, La. |
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MIDDLE TENNESSEE BLUE RAIDERS 9-7, 4-0 CUSA |
at | LA TECH LADY TECHSTERS 9-5, 2-1 CUSA |
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| WATCH: ESPN+ | STATS: LINK | RADIO: WGNS (LINK) | MEDIA CENTER: LINK | ||||
RUSTON, La. – Middle Tennessee continues Conference USA action on the road at LA Tech on Thursday, Jan. 15, inside the Thomas Assembly Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT. The game will air on the Blue Raider Network and broadcast on ESPN+.
GAME 17
» Thursday, January 15 - 6:30 p.m.
» Thomas Assembly Center
» Ruston, Louisiana
SERIES HISTORY
» This marks the 23rd meeting in series history between the Blue Raiders and Lady Techsters.
» MTSU owns a 15-7 lead over LA Tech in the all-time series.
» The Blue Raiders won the previous meeting 55-46 on Feb 20, 2025, in Ruston.
BLUE RAIDER NOTES
» MTSU enters the matchup coming off an 88-51 win over NM State at home. Four Blue Raiders scored in double figures: Alayna Contreras scored a game-high 18 points in 24 minutes, shooting 7-of-13 from the field and 4-of-8 from three, while adding an assist and a steal. Macie Phifer finished with 15 points and a team-high 10 rebounds for a double-double, her second of the season. Yu Han Lin added 15 points off the bench in 19 minutes, shooting 6-of-9 from the floor and 2-of-2 from three, while contributing two assists, two steals and a block. Savannah Davis chipped in 12 points in 25 minutes, knocking down 4-of-7 shots and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, with four rebounds and an assist. A Trio of Blue Raiders added eight points in Blair Baugus, Nicole Dominguez and Kirston Verhulst.
» Lin was named CUSA Freshman of the Week after guiding the Blue Raiders to the most dominant 2–0 week in Conference USA play this season, highlighted by wins over UTEP (86–43) and NM State (88–51). Coming off the bench in both games, she averaged 16.5 points in just 17 minutes per contest. She led the team with 18 points against UTEP, shooting 58.3% from the field, then added 15 points, two assists and two steals versus NM State. The freshman guard shot 61.9% from the field and 80.0% from three on the week.
» MTSU has enjoyed great success on the road under Head Coach Rick Insell. The Blue Raiders are 184-97 overall on the road under Insell, for a 66 percent winning ledger. Insell's teams are 79-22 on the road in CUSA play (76 percent), and 137-33 (79 percent) in conference road games overall (Sun Belt and CUSA).
» The Blue Raiders are 152-18 (.893) under Head Coach Rick Insell when connecting on 10 or more Three-Point Field Goals in a game.
» Middle Tennessee is one of only a handful of Division I programs that do not feature a single returning starter on the roster. According to available national data, Santa Clara is the only program in the country bringing in more newcomers while also returning zero starters.
» Senior Alayna Contreras was selected to the CUSA Preseason All-Conference Team. The Minneapolis, Minn., native started all 33 games last year and led UMKC in scoring (17.3 ppg), minutes, field goals made, three-pointers made and free throws made.
» Middle Tennessee was picked third in the CUSA preseason poll. This marks only the sixth time in Rick Insell's 21 seasons — and just the fourth time in CUSA — that the Blue Raiders have not been selected as the preseason favorite.
SCOUTING THE LADY TECHSTERS
» LA Tech the matchup with a 9-5, 2-1 CUSA record. The Lady Techsters won a pair of road games last week, defeating Delaware 65-50 and Liberty 86-72.
» Four Lady Techsters are averaging double figures in scoring: Paris Bradley (15.3), Jordan Marshall (12.8), Jianna Morris (11.4), and Alexia Weaver (10.1).
» Amaniyo and Mbengue are each averaging near double-doubles, with Amaniyo leading the team at 9.5 rpg and Mbengue close behind at 9.2 rpg.
» Marshall is grabbing a team-high 7.9 rebounds per game, while Bradley is handing out a team-best 3.4 assists per game.
» LA Tech was picked to win in the league's preseason poll, receiving five first-place votes. A season ago, the Lady Techsters finished fifth with an 8-10 conference mark.
FOLLOW THE BLUE RAIDERS
Follow Middle Tennessee Women's Basketball on social media on Facebook (/MTSUWBB), X (Formerly known as Twitter) (@MT_WBB) and Instagram (@mt_wbb).
Saturday, Jan. 17 | 1 p.m. | Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum | Huntsville, Texas |
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MIDDLE TENNESSEE BLUE RAIDERS 9-7, 4-0 CUSA |
at | SAM HOUSTON BEARKATS 10-4, 3-0 CUSA |
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| WATCH: ESPN+ | STATS: LINK | RADIO: WGNS (LINK) | MEDIA CENTER: LINK | ||||
HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Middle Tennessee remains on the road to face Sam Houston on Saturday, Jan. 17, inside Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT. The game will air on the Blue Raider Network and broadcast on ESPN+.
GAME 18
» Saturday, January 17 - 1 p.m.
» Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum
» Huntsville, Texas
SERIES HISTORY
» This marks the fifth meeting in series history between the Blue Raiders and Bearkats.
» MTSU owns a 4-0 lead over Sam Houston in the all-time series.
» The Blue Raiders won the previous meeting 59-46 on Feb. 22, 2025, in Huntsville.
SCOUTING THE BEARKATS
» Sam Houston enters the weekend with a 10-4, 3-0 CUSA record. The Bearkats also won a pair of road games last week, defeating Liberty 59-53 and Delaware 73-65 in overtime. Sam Houston will host WKU on Thursday, Jan. 15, at 6:30 p.m. before taking on the Blue Raiders on Saturday.
» Fanta Kone is leading the Bearkats in scoring with 12.6 points per game, while Deborah Ogayemi is the only other player averaging double figures (11.3 PPG).
» Ogayemi is grabbing a team-high 7.9 rebounds per game, while Kone leads the team in steals (3.8).
» Sam Houston was picked to finish seventh in the league's preseason poll. A season ago, the Bearkats finished in eighth with a 5-13 conference mark.
