MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Unselfish play and team basketball have keyed Middle Tennessee’s current win streak.
Tremendous chemistry was on display as Middle Tennessee catapulted past visiting Southern Miss, 74-44, for its eighth-straight win in front of 5,229 in the Play4Kay game at Murphy Center Saturday night.
The Blue Raiders combined to assist on an amazing 96 percent of their baskets in the victory with 25 helpers on 26 made field goals. Heralded point guard Ty Petty added to her C-USA lead in assists with a team-best seven, while Brea Edwards dished out five and Gabby Lyon and Caroline Warden finished with three each.
“That is a remarkable stat,” Middle Tennessee Head Coach Rick Insell said. “To have 25 assists in 26 field goals is really sharing the basketball. We have been playing as a very unselfish bunch and that is a stat that kind of supports that trait. This was definitely another team win.”
Middle Tennessee (17-7, 11-2) remained one game off of the lead in the C-USA race with another stellar performance that combined high-percentage shooting with stingy defense.
Edwards continued had another quality performance and just missed a double-double. She finished with a game-high 22 points, pulled nine rebounds, dished out five assists and collected three steals. The C-USA leader in 3-point field goals added four more in the victory.
Alex Johnson finished with 14 points and Rebecca Reuter had another solid effort with 13 points and five rebounds. Warden finished with nine points on 3-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc.
Middle Tennessee had another excellent shooting game, knocking down 57 percent (26-for-46) of its shots from the field and 45 percent of its 3-pointers (9-for-20). It marks the fifth time the Blue Raiders have shot 53 percent or better this season and three of the five have taken place in the last four games.
“We are doing a good job moving the basketball, making the extra pass and finding the best option in our offense,” Insell said. “We have also done a good job with our inside-out attack. The bottom line is when you have more movement with the ball and move involvement with your personnel; you will get some good looks. It comes down to knocking down the shots.”
The Blue Raider defense held Southern Miss (12-11, 5-7) to 31 percent shooting. For the second straight game the defense turned the game for good in the third quarter. Leading 38-25 at intermission, Middle Tennessee came out and broke the game open with suffocating defense that did not allow a field goal during the first 7:58 of the third quarter. As a result, the Blue Raiders opened a 20-point lead and never looked back. The Golden Eagles were held to two field goals in the pivotal third quarter.
Middle Tennessee will look to keep its winning ways alive when it travels to Birmingham, Ala., to face UAB, Feb. 21. Tipoff is noon.
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