By Justin Razor
MURFREESBORO, Tenn.—The Middle Tennessee State University basketball team beat down the University of Northern Alabama on Nov. 3 in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, by a final score of 96-65.
MTSU got off on a run early, and from there it was over. UNA couldn’t find the scoreboard until MTSU already had 10 points on it. And even then, just a little bit later, they found themselves down 21-6, which is a big deficit to overcome.
Even just being an exhibition game, the crowd was electric all night. The crowd erupted after big plays on a consistent basis and really helped pump the Blue Raiders throughout the game. This was especially true after one of many three-point shots made by Giddy Potts, in which some people started cheering even before the shot went in.
MTSU was very scrappy when it came to rebounding and putting those second-chance points back in the basket as they had 24 second-chance points. They also capitalized on UNA’s turnovers by finishing with 18 turnover points.
MTSU was very strong behind the arc, finishing 13 of 31. While that might not seem impressive, that’s 39 points. They were near perfect from the free-throw line, hitting 23 of 25, showing that they can capitalize when they are fouled.
MTSU junior guard Giddy Potts led the team in scoring hitting five of his three-point shots out of eight attempts. MTSU redshirt senior forward JaCorey Williams finished the game with 14 points. He hit 83 percent of his attempts, showing how important he is to the team. Other noteworthy scorers were senior forward Reggie Upshaw with 13 points, freshman guard Tyrik Dixson with 9 points, and junior guard Edward Simpson with 9 points.
“Those guys played lights out,” freshman forward Davion Thomas said. “Glad they’re on my team that’s for sure.”
And while MTSU did score a lot, they played excellent on both sides of the ball all night. Their defense created turnovers while limiting UNA to a paltry 65 points. It was that harmony that resulted in the team’s huge win, as their offensive output was directly influenced by their stifling defense.
“Great team win,” redshirt freshman guard Chase Miller said. “Even in exhibition it’s good to see us execute how we did tonight.”
MTSU will need to keep executing just like they did tonight to keep being successful once their season starts. It’s time for the Blue Raiders to prepare to start their season against Milligan College Friday. The season tip-off is at 11 a.m. at Murphy Center, with ticket prices and such located at the following website. https://oss.ticketmaster.com/aps/mtsu/EN/buy/browse
For more information about the Blue Raiders men’s basketball team and its upcoming schedule, visit http://www.goblueraiders.com/index.aspx?path=mbball
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