MTSU men’s basketball (13-14, 7-9 CUSA) dominated on both ends of the court against the University of Delaware (9-18, 5-11 CUSA) winning 78-66.
MTSU celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Blue Raiders defeating Michigan State University in one of the biggest upsets in NCAA tournament history, winning 90-81.
Blue Raiders Chris Loofe and Torey Alston had double-doubles against Delaware, combining for 26 points and 25 rebounds.
“Definitely being physical on the boards, me and Torey attacked on the glass really hard,” Loofe said. “I think that is one of the main things we focused on a lot in preparation for this game.”
The Blue Hens won the opening tipoff and went on an initial 4-0 run, before Alston made a layup to get MTSU on the scoreboard.
Following a three-point jumper by Sean Smith, the Blue Raiders took control of the score for the remainder of the game.
Kamari Lands connected behind the arc for an 8-0 MTSU run before Blue Hen Christian Bliss made a 24-foot jumper.
The Blue Raiders limited Delaware to eight points in the second leg of the first half and shot 37.5% from the field to lead at the half, 31-20.
“Not giving up so many threes, they were 14-of-28 from beyond the arc and they were 1-of-8 before they made the three right before the half,” head coach Nick McDevitt said. “To start the second half, they were 3-of-5 early and so we really just talked about how those guys shot it too well, Fernandez, Bliss, Kazanecki. You give them open looks and they knock it in… you got to guard the right way, that was the biggest difference.”
Going into the second half, MTSU continued to dominate on the glass, with 11 rebounds coming from Loofe and Alston.
MTSU took its largest lead of the game, 58-41, with 9:06 remaining after a pair of successful free throws by Alston.
The Blue Hens went on a small run to cut the lead to 10, with under 5:00 remaining, but defensive boards and tough shots carried MTSU’s momentum.
The Blue Raiders answered back with a run of their own, connecting on open shots and making crucial free throws, to get the game out of reach for Delaware.
“You want to get to the NCAA tournament, well, you got to be winning games now to be ready to play in the Conference USA tournament,” McDevitt said. “…We’re here to win, we’re here to play hard, and win ball games.”
After a much-needed win, MTSU will continue its CUSA home stand against the University of Texas at El Paso (13-14, 6-9 CUSA) on Thursday, Feb. 26. Tipoff is set at 6:30 p.m. CDT at the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
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