SAN ANTONIO – The UTSA men's basketball team returns home on Thursday, Jan. 5, to welcome the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders to the Convocation Center in both squads' fourth Conference USA game of the season. Thursday night's contest is set to tip at 7 p.m., will be streamed on ESPN+ and will be broadcast on Ticket 760 AM.
UTSA (6-8, 0-3 C-USA) enters the Thursday night tilt looking to snap a three-game skid and pick up its first C-USA victory of the season. It will also mark an opportunity for UTSA to claim its first win of the 2023 calendar year. Middle Tennessee (9-5, 2-1 C-USA) has won four of its last six competitions but has won just one road game all season.
The Roadrunners will look to rely on the home-court advantage of the Convocation Center on Thursday as UTSA is 6-3 at home this season and is 70-31 in home games all-time under Steve Henson.
Leading the Roadrunners
UTSA is led on offense by a quartet of double-digit scorers through 14 games of action. Leading the way is JUCO transfer Japhet Medor who churns out a team-high 12.6 points per game. Medor not only leads the team in scoring but also in assists (60) and steals (20) while also pulling down 3.9 boards per contest – the second most by any Roadrunner. Medor has three 20+ point outings this season.
Flanking Medor in the backcourt is fellow JUCO newcomer guard John Buggs III. Buggs chips in 10.7 points per game and has scored in double-figures in six of his last seven games. Through 14 games, Buggs is shooting a team-high 42.9 percent from downtown which is the third highest in C-USA. Freshman DJ Richards also averages double-digit points as the rookie has upped his average to 10 points per game. Richards, a two-time C-USA Freshman of the Week (D12, D19), is shooting the three ball at a 38.5% clip, the second-best on the team to Buggs.
Senior stalwart Jacob Germany is the final double-digit scorer and averages 10.9 points per game. The fourth-year Roadrunner out of Kingston, Okla. is pulling in 7.4 rebounds per contest too, the third-most by any player in C-USA. Germany, a 2021-22 Conference USA All-Conference Honorable Mention, adds 11 total blocks to the team, ranking tenth among all conference players.
Overall, the Roadrunners are shooting 40.3 percent as a team from the field and holding foes to 43.8 percent. UTSA averages 68.9 points, 35.5 rebounds, 12.1 assists, 4.0 steals and 2.9 blocks per game as a team.
Scouting Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee boasts a balanced scoring attack that has five players scoring between 9-12 points per game. Its leading scorer, DeAndre Dishman, averages 12.2 points per contest and also leads the team in rebounding, pulling down 5.6 boards a game.
Not only is MTSU's scoring balanced, but its passing game is too. Three Blue Raiders have 30+ assists as Camryn Weston leads the team with 39 total dimes while Dishman is second on the team, having tallied 34 to date.
Weston and teammate Teafale Lenard Jr. each have 23 steals while Dishman has 19. Lenard Jr. also leads the team in blocks, owning 26 on the season and being the anchor to the Blue Raiders' defense.
Overall, the Blue Raiders are shooting 45.4 percent as a team from the field and holding foes to 44.5 percent. MTSU averages 71.1 points, 34.9 rebounds, 11.6 assists, 8.1 steals and 4.8 blocks per game as a team.
Series History
Thursday night's matchup between the Roadrunners and the Blue Raiders will be the tenth meeting between the two schools all-time. UTSA has lost seven straight to Middle Tennessee, having not won since January 29 of 2015. UTSA is 1-2 against MTSU in games played in the Convocation Center with this being just the fourth time the Blue Raiders have come to the Alamo City.
Up Next
UTSA will welcome Western Kentucky to the Convocation Center this Saturday as it concludes its two-game home stand. Saturday's matchup with WKU is set to tip at 3 pm, will be broadcast on Stadium and will be streamed on Ticket 760 AM.
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