The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (18-9) will close out the regular season on their home court when they square off against the Marshall Thundering Herd (15-13) at Murphy Athletic Center. The game gets underway at 6:00 pm ET on Saturday, Feb. 27.
The Blue Raiders were beaten by Western Kentucky 78-72 on Thursday. Giddy Potts put in a solid effort despite the loss for Middle Tennessee, recording 19 points and 12 rebounds to earn his second double-double of the season. The Thundering Herd are coming off a 95-91 loss at the hands of UAB on Thursday. Stevie Browning had a game-high 23 points.
Second-chance opportunities are expected to be few and far between for the Thundering Herd in this contest. They rank 291st in the nation in offensive rebounding (OR% of 26.4%), while Middle Tennessee is 17th-best in the nation on the defensive backboards (DR% of 75.3%).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Thundering Herd won the first game 82-66. Perrin Buford was a top player in the game with 14 points, nine rebounds, one assist, two steals, and two blocks.
The Blue Raiders are attempting to build on their records of 18-9 Straight Up (SU) and 11-15-1 Against The Spread (ATS). In their last 10 games, they are 7-3 ATS. Middle Tennessee has averaged 90.6 points per game over the last 10 games, higher than its season average of 72.1. Middle Tennessee is excellent from the perimeter, shooting a superb .384 from three-point range. The Blue Raiders will be looking to pick it up in this one after recent defensive struggles. The Blue Raiders have given up an average of 85.3 points to opponents in their last 10 games, well over their defense’s season average of 68.8 PPG.
On the other side, the Thundering Herd head into the game with records of 18-9 ATS and 15-13 SU. They sport the second-ranked scoring offense in the country, averaging 85.1 points per game. The Thundering Herd are an excellent long-range shooting team with 283 three-point shots made (10.0 per game), ranking 13th in Division I. The Thundering Herd are one of the top teams in the country at finding the open man with an average of 16.8 assists per game. The last 10 games have really brought out the best of the Thundering Herd on the defensive end. They’ve allowed 70.4 points per game during that span, which is lower than their season average of 83.2. The Thundering Herd have established a reputation of cleaning up the defensive glass with 27.4 defensive rebounds per game, making them one of the top teams in the nation.
Marshall won the last meeting this season between these two teams, but Middle Tennessee still leads the head-to-head record, 3-2 SU, over their most recent matchups. The Blue Raiders also hold the advantage ATS with a record of 3-2. Middle Tennessee held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once in the last five games, while Marshall wasn’t able to do so in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – Marsh, ATS Winner – Marsh
Notes
“Middle Tennessee is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games “.
“Middle Tennessee is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games “.
“The total has gone OVER in 4 of Middle Tennessee’s last 6 games “.
“Middle Tennessee is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home”.
“Middle Tennessee is 10-2 SU in its last 12 games at home”.
“The total has gone OVER in 5 of Middle Tennessee’s last 6 games at home”.
Marshall is one of the top-scoring teams, averaging 85.2 points per game (ranked fourth). Middle Tennessee allows 68.8 points per game (ranked 95th).
The Marshall Thundering Herd rank 86th for their offensive rating of 109.9. The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders have a defensive rating of 99.6 (ranked 84th).
The Marshall Thundering Herd average a field goal percentage of 46.2% this season. The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders have a losing record of 3-5 when opponents have a FG% of 46.2% or greater.
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders and the Marshall Thundering Herd both rank higher in average effective field goal percentage when compared to their field goal percentages. Middle Tennessee is 162nd and 122nd in the nation for FG% and eFG% respectively, while Marshall is 68th and 36th in these categories.
Ranked 22nd in the nation, Marshall has an average of 16.8 assists per game. Middle Tennessee ranks lower at 196th with 13.1.
Marshall, the 98th-ranked team in rebounding, registers an average of 37.7 rebounds per game. Middle Tennessee does worse, ranked 148th with 36.8.
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders make an average of 6.3 steals per game. The Marshall Thundering Herd are 8-9 when they allow 6 or more steals.
