Featured photo by Savion Davis
Story by Calvin White
MURFREESBORO, Tenn- In the first matchup between the two teams since UAB joined the American Athletic Conference, MTSU fell to the Blazers 58-57 in the Murphy Center.
Historically, UAB has had MTSU head coach Nick McDevitt’s number. After the loss, McDevitt is now 3-10 against the Blazers in his six seasons in Murfreesboro.
MTSU (3-2) jumped out to an early 15-2 lead but UAB (3-2) made multiple runs to either close the gap or take the lead. MTSU played from behind for most of the second half but found a way to give itself a chance to win at the end of regulation.
With MTSU trailing by one with 20 seconds remaining, UAB guard Eric Gaines missed the front end of a one-and-one that gave the Blue Raiders possession. When he realized that there was nowhere for Jestin Porter to go, McDevitt called a timeout with 6.4 seconds remaining.
Inbounding the ball under his own basket, Porter attempted to throw the ball off the back of UAB center Javian Davis. Davis was angled just right to where the ball did not get the bounce Porter was looking for. Gaines picked it up and raced down the court before being fouled with around two seconds remaining.
Gaines missed the front end of another one-and-one, Elias King grabbed the rebound and was forced to heave a shot from beyond halfcourt that fell dead without drawing iron.
After MTSU went up 15-2, UAB transitioned to a 1-3-1 defense in an attempt to slow the Blue Raiders’ offense down.
“Their (UAB) 1-3-1 is going to do one of two things,” McDevitt said. “Generally, it is kind of their press that generates turnovers, and when you don’t turn it over, it hurts your ability to run a bunch of sets because it eats the shot clock up.”
MTSU shot a season-low 14 free throws and only made seven of them. In the previous four games, the Blue Raiders shot 96 total free throws and only made 66 of them for a team free-throw percentage of 66 percent.
After finishing 7-of-14 at the line against the Blazers, MTSU now ranks 298th out of 362 Division I teams in free-throw percentage.
MTSU also ranks 292nd out of 362 in team 3-point percentage. The Blue Raiders made only four of their 21 attempts from beyond the arc against UAB. The free throw and 3-point percentage will both have to drastically increase if MTSU wants to give itself chances to win more games.
Josh Ogundele and O’zhell Jackson each had their breakout game in a Blue Raider jersey. Ogundele finished the night with 12 points, seven rebounds and two steals before fouling out with 1:35 remaining in the game.
“I feel like the team trusts in me,” Ogundele said. “With Cam (Weston) being out, that takes a lot of shots away and I think that everyone’s trying to step up and find their role. I give the credit to my team for trying to get me the ball when I’m hot and it’s paying off.”
Jackson recorded three assists and three blocks in 14 minutes while playing sound defense and handling the ball for most of his time in the game.
UAB scored 40 of its 58 points in the paint. MTSU has allowed at least 36 points in the paint to opponents in four of its first five games. Keeping the ball out of the paint has to be a point of emphasis for McDevitt’s team moving forward.
MTSU has lost two games by a combined three points but has also beaten three teams that were picked to finish at or near the top of their respective conferences in the preseason. Improving the free-throw and 3-point shooting, along with protecting the paint on defense, will raise the ceiling of this Blue Raider team.
Calvin White is the sports editor for MTSU Sidelines. If you have information for a story, you can contact him at wcw3f@mtmail.mtsu.edu. If you have information for a story, you can contact him at wcw3f@mtmail.mtsu.edu. For more news, visit www.mtsusidelines.com. Also, follow us on Facebook and Instagram @mtsusidelines, or on X @MTSUSidelines.
