HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – Middle Tennessee men’s basketball (17-14, 11-9 CUSA) fell to Louisiana Tech (18-13, 11-9 CUSA) in the Conference USA quarterfinals.
Despite the Blue Raiders shortening the lead down the stretch, Middle Tennessee fell 80-69, marking the program’s earliest CUSA tournament exit since the 2011-12 season.
Senior Tre Green carried MTSU’s offense, shooting 50% from both field goal and three-point range, for a combined 20 points.
“It means everything,” Green said. “It’s rare coming in young, leaving MTSU at 21 years old. First year I barely played, my second year getting on the court, making a relationship, getting better and better, growing everyday, gaining my confidence on the court. It’s meant everything here at MTSU.”
LA Tech started the game on a 12-5 run, converting 4-of-4 shots which included two three-point buckets.
Early MTSU turnovers allowed the Bulldogs to convert for eight points, shooting 56% from the field and 70% from three-point territory.
Middle Tennessee went on a 5-0 run following a three-point shot by guard Sean Smith and a pair of successful free throws by big man Chris Loofe, to cut the deficit to 24-20.
However, LA Tech answered with a 5-0 run of its own.
Following a three-point shot from Green, the Bulldogs scored seven consecutive points to extend the lead to 39-25 heading into the half.
At the end of the first half, three Bulldogs scored in double digits, while redshirt forward Torey Alston led MTSU with six.
“They got some guys that are playing awfully well right now, I thought [AJ] Bates was terrific,” head coach Nick McDevitt said. “They made threes early, they were hot, they were coming into the game at 351 in the country from beyond the arc, and they were seven-of-10 at halftime. We didn’t finish the first half, I thought that was really the difference in the game.”
Middle Tennessee went into the second half getting early points from another pair of free throws by Loofe, followed by a three-point shot from Smith and free throws by guard Kamari Lands.
The Bulldogs took their largest lead of the night, 41-27, at the 18:18 mark.
Turnovers and foul woes carried over for the Blue Raiders, as Loofe committed his third foul and was sent to the bench with 15:54 remaining.
With the Blue Raiders in reach by 10 points, the Bulldogs responded with a 4-0 run to push their lead to 45-32.
Carter and Green converted several baskets from three-point range, forcing LA Tech to use a timeout at the 7:57 mark. The Blue Raiders cut the Bulldogs’ lead to six, trailing 56-50.
Coming out of the timeout, MTSU’s weak defense allowed the Bulldogs to extend the lead back to double digits, 67-55.
With 2:54 remaining, Middle Tennessee used a coaches’ challenge on an out-of-bounds play. The challenge was successful as the Blue Raiders maintained possession.
Late-game Blue Raider fouls and poor free-throw shooting extended LA Tech’s lead back to double figures, falling 80-69.
“I’m proud of our games for the effort to get back in the ball game,” McDevitt said. “We just weren’t able to get critical stops, and we turned the ball over too much. We talked about the rebound margin and the turnover margin this time of year, in March. When you have a bad day this time of year It’s usually your last day, and we picked a bad day to have a bad day.”
To contact the sports editor, email [email protected].
Follow Sidelines on Facebook at Facebook.com/MTSUSidelines, on X @mtsusidelines and Instagram @mtsusidelines. Sign up for our weekly newsletter here.
