2017–18 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball team represented Middle Tennessee State University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Blue Raiders, led by 16th-year head coach Kermit Davis, played their home games at the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Tennessee as members of Conference USA. They finished the season 25–8 overall, 16–2 in C-USA play to win the regular season championship. In the C-USA tournament, they were defeated in the quarterfinals by Southern Miss in overtime. As a regular season conference champion who failed to win their conference tournament, the Blue Raiders received an automatic bid to the National Invitation Tournament, where they defeated Vermont in the first round before losing to Louisville in the second round.

2017–18 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball
C-USA regular season champions
NIT, Second Round
ConferenceConference USA
Record25–8 (16–2 C-USA)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaMurphy Center
Seasons
2017–18 Conference USA men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Middle Tennessee 16 2   .889 25 8   .758
Old Dominion 15 3   .833 25 7   .781
Western Kentucky 14 4   .778 27 11   .711
Marshall 12 6   .667 25 11   .694
UTSA 11 7   .611 20 15   .571
UAB 10 8   .556 20 13   .606
North Texas 8 10   .444 20 18   .526
FIU 8 10   .444 14 18   .438
Southern Miss 7 11   .389 16 18   .471
Louisiana Tech 7 11   .389 17 16   .515
Florida Atlantic 6 12   .333 12 19   .387
UTEP 6 12   .333 11 20   .355
Rice 4 14   .222 7 24   .226
Charlotte 2 16   .111 6 23   .207
2018 C-USA Tournament winner

The season marked the first time in the program's history that the Blue Raiders were ranked in the AP Top 25 during the season, coming in at No. 24 on the week of February 19.[1]

Head coach Kermit Davis left the school on March 19, 2018 to accept the head coaching job at Ole Miss.[2][3] He finished at Middle Tennessee with a 16-year record of 332–188. On March 24, the Blue Raiders named UNC Asheville head coach Nick McDevitt as the team's new head coach.[4]

Previous season

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The Blue Raiders finished the 2016–17 season 27–4, 17–1 in C-USA play to win the regular season championship.[5] In the C-USA tournament, they defeated UTSA, UTEP, and Marshall to win the 2017 C-USA Tournament.[6] As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.[7] As the No. 12 seed in the South region, they defeated 5-seeded Minnesota in the first round before losing in the second round to 4-seeded Butler.[8] The team also had several winning streaks during the season winning 8 games in a row in non-conference schedule, 10 games in a row to start conference play and a new school record, then 11 games in a row from mid-conference play all the way through winning the conference tournament and into the NCAA tournament before losing to Butler. The team finished the season with a 31–5, 17–1 record setting new school and conference records for wins in a season and in conference play and had another NCAA tournament upset for the second straight year.

Offseason

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Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Xavier Habersham 4 F 6'6" 208 RS Senior Dublin, GA Graduated
JaCorey Williams 22 F 6'8" 220 RS Senior Birmingham, AL Graduated
Quavius Copeland 24 G 6'1" 178 Junior Greenville, SC Transferred to North Carolina A&T
Reggie Upshaw Jr. 30 F 6'8" 228 Senior Chattanooga, TN Graduated
Stephen Strachan 31 G 6'2" 200 RS Junior Nassau, Bahamas Walk-on; left the team for personal reasons
Aldonis Foote 45 G/F 6'5" 213 Senior Peoria, IL Graduated

Incoming transfers

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
James Hawthorne 4 F 6'7" 205 Junior Prentiss, MS Junior college transferred from Southwest Mississippi Community College.
David Simmons 21 G 6'3" 209 Junior Henderson, KY Junior college transferred from Tallahassee Community College.
Antonio Green G 6'2" 165 Junior Tupelo, MS Transferred from Texas–Rio Grande Valley. Under NCAA transfer rules, Green will have to sit out in the 2017–18 season. Will have two years of eligibility left.

2017 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
T.J. Massenburg
PF
Snellville, GA Shiloh High School 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) N/A Oct 2, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: NR
Therren Shelton-Szmidt
SG
Mississauga, ON Shiloh High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Oct 9, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 9, 2017.

2018 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Junior Farquhar
PG
Orangeville, ON Orangeville Prep 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jul 18, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: NR
Anthony Crump
PG
Canton, MI Plymouth High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 175 lb (79 kg) May 8, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: NR
Jayce Johnson
SG
Buffalo, NY Canisius High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jul 27, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster

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2017–18 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Tyrik Dixon 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 184 lb (83 kg) So Southwest Christian Academy Bentonville, AR
F 1 Brandon Walters 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) RS Sr Howard
Walters State CC
Chattanooga, TN
G 2 Antwain Johnson 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 197 lb (89 kg) Jr Malone Greenwood, FL
G 3 Donovan Sims (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Fr Blackman Murfreesboro, TN
F 4 James Hawthorne 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Prentiss
Southwest Mississippi CC
Prentiss, MS
F 5 Nick King 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Sr Memphis East Memphis, TN
G 10 Will Slatten 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 166 lb (75 kg) RS Fr Moore County Sparta, TN
G 11 Edward Jr. Simpson 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Sr St. Martin Ocean Springs, MS
G 12 Therren Shelton-Szmidt 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Hamilton Heights Christian Academy Mississauga, ON
G 14 Chase Miller (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS So Shelton Dallas, TX
F 15 T. J. Massenburg 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Shiloh Snellville, GA
G 20 Giddy Potts 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 217 lb (98 kg) Sr Athens Athens, AL
G 21 David Simmons 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Henderson County Henderson, KY
F 25 Karl Gamble 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 224 lb (102 kg) Jr A.C. Flora Columbia, SC
F 35 Davion Thomas 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Fr Northside Columbus, GA
G Antonio Green   6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Tupelo
Texas–Rio Grande Valley
Tupelo, MS
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: October 9, 2017

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Nov 2, 2017*
7:30 pm
Arkansas Fort Smith W 85–55 
 25  Potts   6  King   5  Johnson  Murphy Center (2,634)
Murfreesboro, TN
Non-conference regular season
Nov 10, 2017*
11:00 am
Trevecca Nazarene W 104–52  1–0
 17  King   6  King   3  3 tied  Murphy Center (8,227)
Murfreesboro, TN
Nov 13, 2017*
7:00 pm
at Murray State W 72–67  2–0
 31  King   8  Potts   3  Tied  CFSB Center (3,854)
Murray, KY
Nov 16, 2017*
6:30 pm, Stadium
Belmont L 63–69  2–1
 21  King   8  Walters   6  Potts  Murphy Center (5,366)
Murfreesboro, TN
Nov 18, 2017*
3:00 pm
at Tennessee State W 75–65  3–1
 20  King   7  Walters   5  Dixon  Gentry Complex (1,850)
Nashville, TN
Nov 21, 2017*
6:30 pm, Stadium
Florida Gulf Coast W 85–72  4–1
 25  King   10  Dixon   6  Dixon  Murphy Center (5,017)
Murfreesboro, TN
Dec 2, 2017*
6:00 pm
at Florida Gulf Coast W 81–76  5–1
 32  King   11  King   4  King  Alico Arena (4,633)
Fort Myers, FL
Dec 6, 2017*
7:00 pm
at Vanderbilt W 66–63  6–1
 23  King   6  Tied   5  Potts  Memorial Gymnasium (8,739)
Nashville, TN
Dec 9, 2017*
5:00 pm, Stadium
Ole Miss W 77–58  7–1
 25  King   6  King   9  Dixon  Murphy Center (8,806)
Murfreesboro, TN
Dec 16, 2017*
5:00 pm, SECN
vs. Auburn
BHM JAM
L 70–76  7–2
 19  Potts   6  Tied   3  Tied  Legacy Arena (7,209)
Birmingham, AL
Dec 22, 2017*
4:30 pm, ESPNU
vs. Princeton
Diamond Head Classic quarterfinals
W 69–67  8–2
 18  King   5  3 tied   4  Tied  Stan Sheriff Center (7,669)
Honolulu, HI
Dec 23, 2017*
3:30 pm, ESPN2
vs. USC
Diamond Head Classic semifinals
L 84–89  8–3
 28  King   11  King   4  Dixon  Stan Sheriff Center (5,811)
Honolulu, HI
Dec 25, 2017*
7:30 pm, ESPNU
vs. No. 15 Miami (FL)
Diamond Head Classic 3rd place game
L 81–84  8–4
 28  King   8  King   4  Johnson  Stan Sheriff Center (6,062)
Honolulu, HI
Conference USA regular season
Dec 30, 2017
4:00 pm, Stadium
at UAB W 63–60  9–4
(1–0)
 30  King   8  King   6  Simmons  Bartow Arena (4,143)
Birmingham, AL
Jan 4, 2018
6:00 pm
at FIU W 71–66 OT 10–4
(2–0)
 25  Potts   10  King   3  Simpson  FIU Arena (468)
Miami, FL
Jan 6, 2018
4:00 pm
at Florida Atlantic W 61–57  11–4
(3–0)
 16  King   11  King   2  Dixon  FAU Arena 
Boca Raton, FL
Jan 11, 2018
8:00 pm, CBSSN
Louisiana Tech W 72–57  12–4
(4–0)
 22  King   10  King   5  Dixon  Murphy Center (4,418)
Murfreesboro, TN
Jan 13, 2018
5:00 pm, ESPN3
Southern Miss W 69–49  13–4
(5–0)
 19  Walters   10  King   4  Simmons  Murphy Center (4,871)
Murfreesboro, TN
Jan 18, 2018
7:00 pm, beIN
at Marshall L 63–73  13–5
(5–1)
 15  Tied   9  King   3  Simmons  Cam Henderson Center (5,320)
Huntington, WV
Jan 20, 2018
6:00 pm, Stadium
at Western Kentucky W 66–62  14–5
(6–1)
 28  King   9  King   3  King  E.A. Diddle Arena (7,759)
Bowling Green, KY
Jan 25, 2018
6:30 pm, Stadium
UTSA W 75–51  15–5
(7–1)
 22  King   14  Walters   3  Tied  Murphy Center (5,010)
Murfreesboro, TN
Jan 27, 2018
6:00 pm, Stadium
UTEP W 81–50  16–5
(8–1)
 17  Walters   12  Walters   5  Dixon  Murphy Center (5,227)
Murfreesboro, TN
Feb 1, 2018
7:00 pm, Stadium
at Old Dominion W 66–59  17–5
(9–1)
 18  Johnson   11  King   4  Johnson  Ted Constant Convocation Center (7,297)
Norfolk, VA
Feb 3, 2018
6:00 pm
at Charlotte W 78–73  18–5
(10–1)
 24  King   12  King   3  King  Dale F. Halton Arena (4,078)
Charlotte, NC
Feb 8, 2018
6:30 pm, Stadium
Rice W 94–75  19–5
(11–1)
 22  Potts   7  Potts   8  Dixon  Murphy Center (5,602)
Murfreesboro, TN
Feb 10, 2018
5:00 pm
North Texas W 79–73  20–5
(12–1)
 32  King   11  King   7  Johnson  Murphy Center (6,209)
Murfreesboro, TN
Feb 15, 2018
7:00 pm
at Southern Miss W 72–63  21–5
(13–1)
 20  King   11  King   4  Tied  Reed Green Coliseum (2,062)
Hattiesburg, MS
Feb 17, 2018
6:00 pm, Stadium
at Louisiana Tech W 87–70  22–5
(14–1)
 25  King   11  Walters   4  Sims  Thomas Assembly Center (4,847)
Ruston, LA
Feb 24, 2018
6:00 pm, Stadium
No. 24 UAB W 79–54  23–5
(15–1)
 22  King   6  Tied   4  Sims  Murphy Center (9,717)
Murfreesboro, TN
Mar 1, 2018
7:00 pm, CBSSN
No. 24 Western Kentucky W 82–64  24–5
(16–1)
 18  Tied   11  Walters   6  Sims  Murphy Center (11,307)
Murfreesboro, TN
Mar 3, 2018
6:00 pm, Stadium
No. 24 Marshall L 67–76  24–6
(16–2)
 20  Walters   9  King   4  Dixon  Murphy Center (10,050)
Murfreesboro, TN
Conference USA tournament
Mar 8, 2018
6:00 pm, Stadium
(1) vs. (9) Southern Miss
Quarterfinals
L 68–71 OT 24–7
 17  King   9  King   4  Potts  The Ford Center at The Star 
Frisco, TX
NIT
Mar 13, 2018*
7:00 pm, ESPNU
(3) (6) Vermont
First Round – Baylor Bracket
W 91–64  25–7
 25  Potts   12  King   4  King  Murphy Center (5,010)
Murfreesboro, TN
Mar 18, 2018*
5:30 pm, ESPN2
(3) at (2) Louisville
Second Round – Baylor Bracket
L 68–84  25–8
 24  King   6  King   3  Potts  KFC Yum! Center (13,050)
Louisville, KY
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Source[9]

References

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  1. ^ Steinberg, Russell (February 19, 2018). "AP Poll: Middle Tennessee earns first-ever Top 25 ranking". midmajormadness.com. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  2. ^ "Ole Miss announces Kermit Davis as Rebels' next coach". ESPN.com. March 15, 2018. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  3. ^ "Ole Miss formally introduced Kermit Davis as its new men's basketball coach late Monday evening". Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  4. ^ Goodman, Jeff (March 24, 2018). "Nick McDevitt joins Middle Tennessee St. after lengthy run at UNC Asheville". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 24, 2018.
  5. ^ "MBK: Middle Tennessee Claims C-USA Regular-Season Title". Conference USA. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  6. ^ "Middle Tennessee wins 2017 Conference USA basketball tournament". SBNation.com. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  7. ^ "Blue Raiders win Conference USA tournament, head back to NCAA Tournament". DNJ. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  8. ^ "Middle Tennessee vs. Butler – Game Recap – March 18, 2017 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  9. ^ "2017–18 Men's Basketball Schedule". Middle Tennessee State University. Retrieved June 29, 2017.