DENTON, Texas – The UTSA men's basketball team – in the midst of five of six games on the road – will continue a six-day road swing at Middle Tennessee on Monday at 7 p.m. at the Murphy Center. The game will be broadcast live on CUSA TV and Ticket 760 AM.
UTSA (8-16, 1-10 Conference USA) is in the middle of a three-game road trip that included losses at Rice and North Texas and will play a stretch of five of six games on the road, breaking only to host Western Kentucky on Saturday at the Convocation Center.
The Roadrunners suffered a 69-45 loss on Saturday at two-time defending league champion North Texas, with the Mean Green shooting 54.8 percent in the win, holding UTSA to just 29.2 percent from the field and 5 of 21 from 3-point range. UTSA got a team-leading 15 points from Jordan Ivy-Curry and UNT saw Abou Ousmane lead three in double figures with 17 points.
The Roadrunners average 66.4 points, 40 rebounds, 10.8 assists, 5.5 steals and 2.9 blocks per game as a team in 2021-22, shooting 38.3 percent from the field and 28 percent from 3-point range. Opponents are scoring 71.6 points per game, shooting 45.1 percent and 36 percent from deep.
Jordan Ivy-Curry, a sophomore guard, leads the team with 15.2 points and 2.6 rebounds per game, while junior guard Dhieu Deing sports 14.2 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Junior center Jacob Germany chips in 13.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Senior guard Darius McNeill averages 6.5 points and 2.4 rebounds per game.
Middle Tennessee (14-7, 5-3 C-USA) had its five-game winning streak snapped in a 22-point loss at UAB on Saturday afternoon. The Blue Raiders had rallied after opening the year with an 0-2 record to move atop the East Division standings before the setback. Under the direction of third-year head coach Nick McDevitt, MTSU averages 74.7 points, 35.1 rebounds, 12.6 assists, 8.6 steals and 4.5 blocks per game as a team, shooting 44.8 percent from the field and 31.6 percent from deep. Opponents are shooting 42.8 percent and 32.9 percent from deep, scoring 67.7 points per game.
Josh Jefferson leads the team with 13.8 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, with Donovan Sims sporting 11.1 points and 4.1 rebounds per outing. Eli Lawrence averages 10.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, while Camryn Weston chips in 8.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. DeAndre Dishman has scored 8.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while starting all 21 contests.
The all-time series between the two clubs has been dominated by Middle Tennessee, 7-1, with the Blue Raiders winning all four meetings in Murfreesboro. UTSA won in 2014-15 in San Antonio but have lost six straight in the series. In the last meeting in 2019-20, the Blue Raiders posted an 83-80 win over UTSA in San Antonio, making three free throws with under three seconds left on the clock after UTSA was called for a foul on a 3-point attempt in a tie game. UTSA got 32 points from Jhivvan Jackson and 22 points from Keaton Wallace, while MTSU was led by a 27 point outing from C.J. Jones. UTSA shot 50 percent in the loss, while MTSU finished with a 43.3 percent clip. UTSA trailed by 12 at halftime before roaring back in the second half with a key 9-0 run.
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