MTSU Blue Raiders men’s basketball journey to Conference USA East Division champions
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (BVM) – Nick McDevitt’s first three seasons as head coach of the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders men’s basketball team failed to meet expectations, but now his team has achieved the taste of success they were looking for.
The Blue Raiders clinched the Conference USA East title after a 69-52 win over rival Western Kentucky. They also ended the regular season undefeated at home with 15 wins, and have accumulated an overall record of 22-7 with two games left. This team has come a long way, but their journey to achieve success began back in the summer of 2021.
Last season, the Blue Raiders finished the season with a 5-18 record and lost in the C-USA tournament. Heading into the offseason, the coaching staff knew that their major key stars would be returning, but they also needed some new talent as well.
Heading into the season, McDevitt knew he needed to get his team moving in the right direction, and he was impressed with his mix of old and new talent.
“Well, we’ll find out soon enough once the season starts if we’re successful, but I do like our team’s effort and their attitude,” McDevitt said in a Q&A session. “They’ve had a good workman approach throughout the preseason, dating all the way back to the summer.”
With this new and improved mindset, the Blue Raiders were ready to dominate their opposition. In their first game of the regular season, they defeated Brescia 98-59 with their improved defense. The win was a nice start, but McDevitt was also thrilled to see faces at the games.
“It’s great to be back in front of fans,” McDevitt said. “Having people back here in the Murphy Center is really something our players had been waiting on. It’s just different having people out there.”
After a great win to the start, the Blue Raiders continued their journey by winning the Mayan division title in the Cancun Challenge. “We played hard,” McDevitt said during a press release.
“We played well, but we played hard. I didn’t think their shots affected our defensive effort, and we rebounded the ball well… Mercer is really good. The final score isn’t indicative of what the game was, but to win like that, you’ve got to play really, really good, and I thought we did.”
The Blue Raiders continued their winning ways after the Cancun Challenge and improved to 6-1 on the season. Now, they sit at the top of the conference and are looking to shock the world even more. McDevitt could’ve let the pressure get to him, but he learned how to block out the noise.
“Listening to negativity isn’t going to help you,” McDevitt said in a press release. “It’s hard to have a positive impact if you let negative things like that affect your attitude. I had belief the entire time in the staff I had around me and the players we continue to bring in.”
With two games left in the regular season, the Blue Raiders will look to finish strong and work their way to a C-USA Championship and earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament.
