With three seconds remaining in regulation, Middle Tennessee guard Sean Smith sprinted the length of the E.A. Diddle Arena floor and floated a last-second shot, rising from the elbow to send the game to overtime against rival Western Kentucky University.
Clank.
The 82-80 loss to the Hilltoppers dropped MTSU to 6-8 in Conference USA play, with six of those defeats coming by five points or less. With only six games remaining in the regular season, three main areas need to improve to get the Blue Raiders back on track ahead of the CUSA tournament.
Defense must rebound
Over the last seven games, Middle Tennessee has allowed 81 points per contest. Prior to that stretch, MTSU held opponents to under 80 points in all but four matchups this season. While the Blue Raiders’ offense has picked up the pace in the home stretch, it’s the opposite on the defensive end.
“We’re scoring in the 80s… but we’re giving up in the ‘80s,” MTSU head coach Nick McDevitt said. “So you’re putting a lot of pressure on the offense to try to score in the high 80s and 90s to win games.”
The biggest breakdown for the Blue Raiders has come on the perimeter, where Middle Tennessee struggles to stay attached to shooters, especially on off-ball screens. Clean looks from downtown early in games force MTSU to play from behind. Against Western Kentucky, the Hilltoppers jumped out to a 14-point lead four minutes into the second half, powered by strong shooting.
During the Blue Raiders’ five-game losing streak, MTSU allowed the University of Delaware to shoot 50% from three-point range, totaling 42 points from deep, which proved costly in a one-point loss.
Foul trouble also played a role in MTSU’s latest loss to WKU, as the Hilltoppers shot 28-of-32 from the free-throw line compared to 9-of-13 for MT. In the defeat, forwards Chris Loofe and Torey Alston fouled out in the final minutes, leaving Luka Jovanovic, who finished with four fouls of his own, as the only big man left in the lineup.
“If we’re gonna kind of take that next jump, we’ve got to get back to guarding the way we were about six weeks ago,” McDevitt said.
If the Blue Raiders want to make a run in the CUSA tournament, they need to revert to defending the perimeter and making clean looks from deep.
Perimeter shooting remains a toss-up
The Blue Raiders have had an on-and-off relationship with the three-point shot over the course of the season.
Earlier in conference play, Middle Tennessee broke the program record for made three-pointers in a game. However, down the stretch, it’s been a different story. Recently, the Blue Raiders have struggled to find a rhythm from deep. In the last four games, MTSU has shot a combined 40-of-126, or 32%, from beyond-the-arc.
In an offensive system that relies on perimeter production to open driving lanes, Middle Tennessee has used offensive rebounds to prolong possessions and create additional scoring opportunities. The Blue Raiders grabbed 13 offensive boards to the Hilltoppers’ seven, creating second-chance opportunities in the paint.
“We had some really good offensive execution down the stretch and just missed that timely three,” McDevitt said.
Despite the lack of production from deep, a change in tempo on the offensive end has kept MTSU’s offense afloat.
Tempo has sparked the offense
While the Blue Raiders have struggled shooting from the perimeter, over the last four games, Middle Tennessee has had no issues finding buckets, scoring at least 80 points.
“Our pace is a lot better,” McDevitt said. “There were stretches where we were just playing too slow and against set defenses all the time.”
The uptick in tempo has been noticeable in transition. Against the ‘Tops, the Blue Raiders held a five-rebound advantage, which turned into fast-break dunks on the other end of the floor.
The Blue Raiders have improved offensively by corralling defensive rebounds and turning that into easy opportunities, McDevitt said.
MTSU has also turned to the paint to generate easy points on the offensive end. Middle Tennessee scored 40 points in the lane against WKU, which is the highest mark in conference play this season.
“I think we just got to set harder screens and cut hard and just play together,” forward Chris Loofe said.
If Middle Tennessee maintains its offensive pace while limiting scoring opportunities defensively, the Blue Raiders can close out the regular season with momentum heading into tournament play.
The Blue Raiders will hit the road to take on the Sam Houston Bearkats (17-8, 9-5 CUSA) on Wednesday, before returning to the Murphy Center for three straight at home against Delaware on Feb. 21, the University of Texas at El Paso on Feb. 26 and New Mexico State University on Feb. 28.
After the home stand, the Blue Raiders will travel to Miami to take on Florida International University on March 5 and close out the regular season at Missouri State University on March 7.
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