The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (13-7, 6-3 CUSA) will try to break down one of the top shooting defenses in Conference USA when they head to face the No. 21 Florida Atlantic Owls (19-1, 9-0 CUSA) on Thursday.
Middle Tennessee topped the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs 68-51 at Thomas Assembly Center on Saturday, their fourth win in a row. Elias King was the scoring leader with 17 points. Teafale Lenard Jr was another standout performer with 11 points.
The Blue Raiders are third in Conference USA. Florida Atlantic won their 18th in a row on Saturday at Don Haskins Center, beating the UTEP Miners 67-59.
Johnell Davis had 20 points and six rebounds, carrying the team. The Owls are first in Conference USA. This is the only meeting of the season between the teams.
Middle Tennessee won both matchups between the teams last season, the last of which was an 87-79 triumph at Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena in February 2022. Josh Jefferson led the Blue Raiders with 26 points. Alijah Martin had 22 points and six rebounds in defeat.
The Blue Raiders have been led this season by Deandre Dishman and Eli Lawrence, who are averaging 12.0 and 12.0 points per game, respectively. Dishman also has grabbed 5.6 rebounds per game.
Meanwhile, Camryn Weston is dishing 2.5 assists per game. Davis (11.5 ppg), Martin (10.4), and Vladislav Goldin (10.1) have been the primary providers of the Owls’ offense. Goldin also has averaged 6.2 rebounds per game.
Meanwhile, Jalen Gaffney has distributed 2.4 assists per game. Holding foes to only 40.0% from the field, the Owls are one of the stingiest FG% defenses in the league (2nd).
The Blue Raiders have found success in recent visits to Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena, winning seven of the last 10. Middle Tennessee is 6-4 in the last 10 games with an average margin of +1.4 (68.6-67.2).
Florida Atlantic has won each of the last 10 as part of the team’s 18-game win streak, scoring 72.4 points per game on average while holding opponents to 62.4 (+10.0 margin). The Owls are averaging 77.5 ppg for the full season while allowing 63.4.
BLUE RAIDERS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Justin Bufford: 7.4 | 5.0 | +2.5
Elias King: 8.0 | 12.4 | -4.3
Points per game:
Elias King: 4.8 | 8.2 | -3.3
Rebounds per game:
Camryn Weston: 3.4 | 4.6 | -1.2
Assists per game:
Camryn Weston: 1.6 | 2.5 | -0.9
OWLS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points per game:
Johnell Davis: 16.2 | 11.5 | +4.8
Assists per game:
Jalen Gaffney: 3.0 | 2.4 | +0.6
SportsTips’ College Basketball Pick:
FAU -8.5 (-115)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
