Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders Clash with Belmont Bruins at Murphy Athletic Center
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders faced a challenging contest against the Belmont Bruins, culminating in a 75-65 scoreline. The home team's season record now stands at 0-0, while the visiting Bruins hold an identical record.
At the Murphy Athletic Center, fans witnessed the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders put forth a valiant effort against their opponents. Despite trailing by eight points after the first half, they managed to add 35 points to their tally in the second half. However, it was not enough to overcome the deficit as they fell ten points short of victory.
The Blue Raiders showed determination on defense with five blocks and six steals but were outpaced by the Bruins' nine steals. In terms of assists, Middle Tennessee provided commendable support with 12 assists but again fell just short of Belmont's 13 assists.
Offensively, Middle Tennessee had trouble finding their rhythm from beyond the arc, converting seven out of 23 three-point attempts for a three-point shooting percentage of roughly 30 percent. Inside the paint was more productive for them with thirty points scored but still less than Belmont's forty-two points in that area.
Free throws also proved to be an area where improvement could be made; fourteen free throws were made from twenty-three attempts which translates into approximately a 61 percent success rate at the charity stripe for Middle Tennessee.
Rebounding was one aspect where Middle Tennessee edged out their opponents slightly; they grabbed thirty-three rebounds over Belmont's thirty-two. This included eight offensive rebounds which contributed to thirteen second-chance points for them.
Despite these efforts and scoring sixteen points off turnovers equaling that of Belmont’s output from turnovers, it wasn't enough as they turned over possession twelve times throughout this encounter compared to ten by their adversaries.
Looking ahead for fans of The Blue Raiders is another opportunity to rally behind their team when they take on Saint Mary's Gaels at University Credit Union Pavilion in Moraga on December 19th at 7:00 PM local time. This game will be available for viewing on ESPN+, allowing supporters not able to attend another chance to watch The Blue Raiders compete live.