National Basketball Association
Middle Tennessee St. 71, Tennessee 64
When: 7:00 PM ET, Monday, March 19, 2012
Where: Thompson-Boling Arena, Knoxville, Tennessee
Officials:
# Chris Beaver, # John Heatly, # Bryan Kersey
Attendance:
12038
By SportsDirect Inc.
Middle Tennessee State 71, Tennessee 64: Bruce Massey scored a career-high 20 points, including back-to-back buckets in the final 1:34 to help the Blue Raiders snap a nine-game losing streak against their in-state rivals with a win in the second round of the NIT.
Middle Tennessee advances to face the Miami-Minnesota winner in Wednesday's third round.
Tennessee did not score in the final 7:12. The Blue Raiders outscored the Vols 15-0 during that stretch.
The Blue Raiders (27-6) cooled off after a hot start led them to a 23-11 lead, and they struggled to keep up with the Vols with star LaRon Denby saddled with foul trouble.
But Massey picked up the scoring load, going 6 of 10 from the field and 8 of 9 from the foul line. He also grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds for his first double-double.
Forward Jeronne Maymon returned from a right knee injury for Tennessee to score 17 points and grab seven rebounds off the bench, but the Vols could not find their offensive rhythm down the stretch.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Middle Tennessee also beat Tennessee in the first round of the NIT in 1988 in Murfreesboro, Tenn. … The Vols dropped to 34-11 against in-state NCAA Division I opponents since the 2005-06 season. … Tennessee had won 13 of its previous 14 games at Thompson-Boling Arena.
Top Game Performances
| Middle Tennessee St. |
|
Tennessee |
|
Bruce Massey 20 |
Scoring |
Jeronne Maymon 17 |
|
Bruce Massey 4 |
Assists |
Trae Golden 8 |
|
Bruce Massey 10 |
Rebounds |
Jeronne Maymon 7 |
|
Bruce Massey 8 |
Free Throws Made |
Trae Golden 6 |
|
Bruce Massey 3 |
Steals |
Skylar McBee 3 |
|
Bruce Massey 1 |
Blocks |
Jordan McRae 2 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Middle Tennessee St.
|
71 |
46.2 |
3-11 |
20-28 |
12 |
45 |
1 |
5 |
17 |
| Tennessee
|
64 |
37.9 |
1-13 |
19-30 |
12 |
29 |
4 |
8 |
10 |
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