Middle Tennessee men’s basketball (9-6, 3-1 CUSA ) fell in overtime to the University of Texas at El Paso (5-10, 1-3 CUSA play) Thursday night at the Don Haskins Center, 83-80.
MTSU started the first half strong, going 42.3% from the field, and shot 6-of-9 from three-point range. Following a successful three-point shot from Tre Green at the 8:22 mark, the Blue Raiders took their largest lead of 13 points, leading 30-17.
Although fouls and turnovers started to plague Middle Tennessee, it took a convincing lead into the half 44-37.
The Blue Raiders’ momentum started to shift following a pair of successful free-throw attempts by the Miners, as UTEP tied the score 66-66 with 4:28 remaining
Chris Loofe’s dunk put Middle Tennessee back on top, before UTEP answered back with a three-point shot, creating a back-and-forth scoring match between both teams.
Sean Smith scored on a driving layup with 28 seconds remaining, tying the game at 73 points to force overtime.
Loofe kept Middle Tennessee afloat with 14 of his 16 points scored in the second half.
While the Blue Raiders took the early lead in overtime, fouls continued to be an issue, as the Miners scored five points off free throws in the clutch time.
MTSU committed a team shot clock turnover with less than two minutes remaining, before a series of turnovers that doomed the Blue Raiders.
With under a minute left to play, both MTSU and UTEP continued to foul, gaining free throw attempts and an advantage for a last-minute score to win the game.
With two seconds remaining, Smith unsuccessfully attempted a 34-foot three-point shot to send the game into double overtime, leaving the Blue Raiders hanging for their first conference loss of the season.
Coming off the loss, MTSU will travel to Las Cruces, New Mexico, to face off against the New Mexico State University Aggies (9-5, 2-2 CUSA) on Thursday, Jan. 10. The Blue Raiders and Aggies will tip off at 8:00 CDT on Jan. 10 inside the Pan American Center.
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