MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee men’s basketball has finalized its 2022-23 schedule. The 31-game schedule includes 20 Conference USA games and 11 non-conference contests, including nine games against Division I opponents who finished last season with an average NET rating of 92. Middle Tennessee will play 14 home games in its 50e season at Murphy Center, where he has a 17-game winning streak.
“This year’s non-conference roster will be tough, but it will prepare us for the challenges of American Conference play,” the head coach said. Nick McDevitt said. “We will face many teams that were either conference champions or finalists a season ago, most of which will be away from Murfreesboro. This will prove to be a constant test for our team.”
MTSU’s Division I non-conference schedule includes games against Chattanooga and Murray State at Murphy Center, contests at Winthrop, Missouri State, St. Bonaventure and Belmont, and neutral site tilts with Hofstra, Stephen F. Austin and Montana State at the Northern Classic in Montreal.
The non-conference roster includes four teams that have won at least a share of their conference’s regular-season championships and three others that have been runners-up. Murray State, Chattanooga, Stephen F. Austin and Montana State have each won conference championships. Missouri State and Belmont finished second in the Missouri Valley and Ohio Valley, respectively. Winthrop was a two-time runner-up, finishing the regular season with the second-best record in the Deep South before falling in the conference tournament title game. Additionally, Hofstra finished third in the Colonial Athletic Association behind co-champions UNC Wilmington and Towson. St. Bonaventure earned a playoff bid by competing in the NIT.
None of the nine non-conference DI opponents finished outside the top 150 in the NET standings, combining to go 222-78, good for a .740 winning percentage.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮-𝟮𝟯 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲#BLUEnited | #To stay together pic.twitter.com/gpcHMtLBTR
— MT Basketball (@MT_MBB) September 13, 2022
The Blue Raiders open the season on November 7 with a morning denunciation against Brescia, marking the return of Education Day at Murphy Center. The first road trip of the season takes MTSU to Rock Hill, SC, to take on Winthrop in the rematch of a home-and-away series that began in 2021-22.
The Blue Raiders return home Nov. 15 to face Rice in the first conference game by schedule date in program history. MTSU has beaten the Owls in four of the five contests between the two teams that took place at the Glass House.
The Blue Raiders travel to Springfield, MO on Nov. 19 to take on Missouri State. The game will be MTSU’s second meeting with the Bears and first since 2008.
This Thanksgiving week, Middle Tennessee will head north of the border for the Northern Classic, a multi-team event to be held at Place Bell in Montreal, Quebec. The Northern Classic pits MTSU against Hofstra, Stephen F. Austin and Montana State, three teams that finished in the top 130 of the 2021-22 NET Rankings. The Blue Raiders end November with a road game in Saint-Bonaventure.
Middle Tennessee hosts Chattanooga on December 15 as Blue Raiders celebrate 50e anniversary of the Murphy Center. The December non-conference schedule also includes games at Belmont on the 10 and at home to Murray State on Dec. 21.
The Blue Raiders will play a home-and-away series with all C-USA opponents, giving them the most conference games in a season since 2012-13. Middle Tennessee is coming off a 13-5 performance in C-USA, its best conference mark in five years.
A New Year’s Eve matchup with Western Kentucky at Murphy Center headlines the home conference schedule. North Texas makes its first visit to Murfreesboro since 2020 on January 7.
The Blue Raiders play their first consecutive home games against C-USA on January 16 and 19 against UAB and Charlotte, respectively. Middle Tennessee will look to avenge a triple overtime loss to the Blazers in the 2022 C-USA Tournament semifinals. The 49ers were the first two opponents in the Blue Raiders’ 17-game winning streak at home and have never won in Murfreesboro.
After three straight games, MTSU kicks off February with contests Feb. 2 and 4 against UTEP and UTSA, combined 2-10 teams all-time at Murphy Center. Two weeks later comes a home weekend with Florida Atlantic and FIU. The Blue Raiders are 24-8 all-time at home against the Owls and Panthers after sweeping each team’s season streak in 2021-22.
The final home game on the schedule will pit Middle Tennessee against LA Tech on Feb. 25, the Bulldogs’ first appearance in the Glass House since Jan. 23, 2020. A trip to the Lone Star State takes the Blue Raiders to North Texas and the ‘UTEP to wrap up the regular season.
The Blue Raiders are bringing back 11 players from the 2021-22 season. McDevitt brought two young guards from college to Trevon Smith and Jestin Porter and a real freshman Tre Green to expand the range.
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