BASKETBALL NCAA Tournament: #25/RV Middle Tennessee (12) vs #24/21 Butler(4) (TBS), 6:10PM, Saturday, 3/18/2017

[SpaceRaider]

work in progress

GAME INFORMATION

(Game notes)

Game Notes: Middle Tennessee, Butler
Hashtag: #TrueFamily, #BlueRaiders
Twitter: MT_MBB
Instagram: @MT_MBB
Facebook: Blue Raider Athletics

Date: Thursday, March 18, 2017
Time: 6:10 PM
Teams: Middle Tennessee (31-4, 17-1) vs. Butler
Location: Milwaukee, WI
Arena: BMO Harris Bradley Center (19,000)
Television: TV: Carter Blackburn (PxP), Mike Gminski (analyst) and Debbie Antonelli (analyst)
Radio: WGNS (1450/100.5/101.9), WPRT (97.5/102.5), WMOT (89.5)
Play-by-Play: Chip Walters
Analysis: Kyle Turnham


NCAA RPI: MT #35 / Butler #15

warren nolan live rpi: MT #28 / Butler #15

Live-RPI.com: MT #35 / Butler #15

Sagarin: MT #56 / Butler #26

Pomeroy: MT #40 / Butler #25

KPI: MT #33 / Butler #9

ESPN BPI: MT #42 / Butler #25

 

[SpaceRaider]

the always interesting opponents message board

 

[SpaceRaider]

MT an underdog...




No. 12 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders vs. No. 4 Butler Bulldogs (TBS, 7:10 p.m. ET)

Opening Odds: Butler -4 ½, 140

Betting Matchup

The Blue Raiders dominated Minnesota in the first round, winning 81-72 as a 1.5-point favorite despite being seeded 12th. After last year's win over Michigan State, Middle Tennessee fell short of reaching the Sweet 16 for the first time in school history, losing 75-50 to eventual Final Four participant Syracuse. MTSU is 0-3 when attempting to reach the regional semifinals.

Veterans Reggie Upshaw and Giddy Potts still lead the group, but they've all gotten an enormous boost from Arkansas transfer Jacorey Williams, who helped the team go 17-1 in regular-season play in Conference USA before three double-digit wins in the league tournament. Don't discard any of this team's accomplishments as a fluke. They're long, defend every possession intensely, rebound well as a group and control the pace of almost every game as a result.

The Bulldogs won their first eight contests this season, which included wins over NCAA Tournament teams Arizona, Northwestern, Vanderbilt and Bucknell. After a shock loss at Indiana State, Butler tookout Cincinnati, Indiana, Vermont, Villanova, Xavier and Marquette in Indianapolis, all by mid-January. They stumbled down the stretch, going just 5-5 entering this tournament following a quarterfinal exit in the Big East. Although they handled Winthrop thanks to Avery Woodson leading this year's team in scoring for only the second time, this group hasn't exactly inspired much confidence.

Top forward Kelan Martin, a 6-foot-7 versatile scorer who mixes it up on the boards and can really create mismatches with his shooting range, snapped out of a February slump and led the teams in scoring in four straight entering these NCAAs. Big men Andrew Chrabascz and Tyler Wideman aren't tall, but their versatility allows Butler to play through them, creating a more diverse offense. Butler is 22-3 when scoring at least 68 points and is 2-5 when they fail to, so keeping Middle Tennessee from bogging it down with its defense and pace will be the key to advancing.

Betting Trends

-- Middle Tennessee was favored in all of its C-USA games, so they'll be an underdog for just the fourth time all season. They defeated UNC-Wilmington and Ole Miss while losing at VCU in the role. The Blue Raiders are 3-0 against the number when getting points and have seen the over prevail in five of their last six despite their desire to defend and slow tempo.

-- Butler has seen the under connect in three straight games, which spells trouble given their lack of success when their offense falters. The Bulldogs are looking to avoid a loss in their second game of the tournament for the fourth straight time since reaching the 2011 National Championship game.

 

[SpaceRaider]

my first thought when I saw this on twitter was some Butler fan did this...

 

[MTBig Blue]

This team has history staring it in the face. Time to play our best game of the year...then hope like hell that Arkansas or Seton Hall can beat UNC.

 

[SpaceRaider]

Tennessean:

Rexrode: Breaking down Butler, Middle Tennessee's Sweet 16 roadblock

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[MTsumner92]

Agreed.....MT will need to play their best game of the year. I thought Jacory was a little off yesterday but Reggie made up for it. Walters keeps getting better. Tomorrow will be a war! Many lead changes and heart attacks coming. I love the NCAA tournament baby!!!!

 

[SpaceRaider]

si.com:
http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2017/03/17/ncaa-tournament-middle-tennessee-butler-preview
Middle Tennessee looks to continue its tournament magic against Butler

 

[SpaceRaider]

This guy seems to be all in...

excerpt:

...The #12 seed Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders take on the #4 seed Butler Bulldogs in 2nd round NCAA tournament action on Saturday.

The Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders come into this one fresh off of their opening round 81-72 win over Minnesota, giving MTSU their 11th straight win and 21st win in their last 22 games overall. Reggie Upshaw led the team with 19 points on 7 of 13 shooting with a team-high 9 rebounds, while Giddy Potts came 2nd with 15 points on 4 of 9 shooting with a pair of tripled and a share of the team lead with 5 assists. JaCorey Williams came 3rd with 13 points on 4 of 14 shooting with 6 boards in addition to a pair of steals and Brandon Walters added 10 points on 5 of 6 shooting with 6 rebounds in just 14 minutes on the floor. Tyrik Dixon chipped in 6 points and 5 assists of his own in the win. Williams leads the team with an average of 17.2 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, while Dixon leads the team in assists with 3.3 assists per game this season. As a team, Middle Tennessee is scoring 75.2 points per game on 49% shooting from the field, 37.1% from behind the arc and 69.7% from the foul line this season.

The Butler Bulldogs reached the 2nd round following a 76-64 win over Winthrop in the opening round on Thursday. Avery Woodson led the team with 18 points on 6 of 10 shooting from behind the 3-point line along with 5 rebounds. Andrew Chrabascz came 2nd with 12 points on 4 of 8 shooting with 4 reboudns and 3 assists, while Kelan Martin scored 10 points in addition to a game-high 8 rebounds. Tyler Lewis scored 9 points while dishing out a team-high 8 assists for the Bulldogs and Kamar Baldwin scored 7 points with a pair of steals. Tyler Wideman and Nate Fowler each contributed a pair of blocks in Butler’s winning effort. Martin leads the team with an average of 15.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game while Lewis leads the team in assists with 4 assists per game this season. As a team, Butler is scoring 76.3 points per game on 47.8% shooting from the field, 36.5% from behind the arc and 73.6% from the foul line this season.

Middle Tennessee is 22-7 ATS in their last 29 games overall and 5-0 ATS in their last 5 neutral site games while the under is 9-3 in their last 12 non-conference games. Butler is 21-5-2 ATS in their last 28 NCAA tournament games and 7-3 ATS in their last 10 vs. C-USA while the under is 6-2-1 in their last 9 neutral site games.

I keep saying it to anyone who will listen, this Middle Tennessee team is no joke, as I have the Blue Raiders in the final four in a lot of my brackets. Butler didn’t look good near the end of the season, and Winthrop is a good team that came out of a weak Big South conference, while Middle Tennessee just took down one of the better Big Ten teams.....

 

[SpaceRaider]

NCAA Tournament Preview: No. 4 Butler vs. No. 12 Middle Tennessee

 

[SpaceRaider]

Middle Tennessee won't back down against Butler

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[SpaceRaider]

Indy Star:

video: Breaking down Butler vs. Middle Tennessee

 

[HenryMuto]

This should be a great game. Both teams are very good could go either way.

 

[SpaceRaider]

DNJ:
http://www.dnj.com/story/sports/col...-big-country-living-up-expectations/99307878/
Middle Tennessee's Walters a big-eating, soft-spoken matchup nightmare

5 things to watch: Middle Tennessee vs. Butler in NCAA tournament second round


Nevada Appeal:
http://www.nevadaappeal.com/sports/college/nvaa-middle-tennessee-state-taking-big-times-best-shot/
Middle Tennessee taking big-time’s best shot

Athlon:

The Blue Raiders can earn their first-ever Sweet 16 berth with a win over the Tournament-tested Bulldogs

AP:

Butler Looks to Hold off MT, Return to Sweet 16

Journal Gazette:
http://www.journalgazette.net/sports/colleges/Butler-must-tame-quirky-MTSU-zone-18312981
Butler must tame quirky MT zone

IndyStar:

Is Butler a mid-major? Is Middle Tennessee? One gets to Sweet 16

Hendricks County Flyer:
http://www.flyergroup.com/sports/lo...cle_0d7d7c31-d56d-5151-902a-c0ebb5b68d8f.html
Bulldogs aware big challenge awaits with Blue Raiders

SBNation:
http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2017/3/17/14961700/butler-bulldog-banned-ncaa-march-madness-rule
This stupid NCAA rule is banning the Butler bulldog from March Madness

USAToday For The Win blog:
http://ftw.usatoday.com/2017/03/but...caa-tournament-march-madness-twitter-good-dog
Butler mascot not allowed inside NCAA tournament again, tweets '#FreeBlue3'

 

[SpaceRaider]

MT Butler game discussed starting at 5:05 mark




Talk about Middle at about the 1:15 mark

 

[SpaceRaider]

I notice there's been more use of "Middle Tennessee" instead of the usual "MTxx" by the gannett folks in recent days...

Tennessean:
http://www.tennessean.com/story/spo...ch-listen-follow-ncaa-march-madness/99332656/
Middle Tennessee vs Butler: How to watch, listen, follow NCAA March Madness

Rexrode: Middle Tennessee Sweet 16 hopes rest on JaCorey Williams

 

[SpaceRaider]

bigeastcoastbias.com:
Middle Tennessee vs. Butler 2017 NCAA Tournament Second Round: TV schedule, streaming info, odds, and more!

 

[SpaceRaider]

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

D'Amato: Middle Tennessee planting seed of excellence

Tennessean:
http://www.tennessean.com/story/spo...icking-middle-tennessee-beat-butler/99331748/
Rexrode: Why I'm picking Middle Tennessee to beat Butler

 

[SpaceRaider]

goblueraiders.com:
http://goblueraiders.com/news/2017/3/17/mens-basketball-raiders-focused-solely-on-the-bulldogs.aspx
RAIDERS FOCUSED SOLELY ON THE BULLDOGS

 

[SpaceRaider]

News-Sentinel:

Middle Tennessee brings daunting resume, talent to matchup with Butler

Journal Sentinel:

5-foot-10 Tyler Lewis a big part of Butler's success

Star Tribune:

To be the "next Butler," Middle Tennessee must beat 'Dawgs

 

[SpaceRaider]

ButlerSports.com:

@ButlerMBB and Middle Tennessee to Meet in NCAA Second Round

 

[C-Bow]

@MLD45 back again with another in depth preview for you guys. Check it out!


NCAA Tournament Preview: MT vs Butler

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[SpaceRaider]

CUSA blogger Dave West:

Against a former Cinderella, Middle Tennessee has a shot at another program-building win

 

[C-Bow]

That just doesn't sound like a guy who's ready to go anywhere, does it?

 

[SpaceRaider]

on wsnr on Friday afternoon

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[JohnDavidBlue]

No, and I also am impressed with the disposition of the three leaders of the team.

That just doesn't sound like a guy who's ready to go anywhere, does it?

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[sWiley]

lines down to 2.5

 

[SpaceRaider]

 

[sWiley]

Tip off is near....Lets do this guys.

 

[MidTnBlues]

Anyway to stream this game for the non cable users?

 

[sWiley]

why do we always gotta come out so cold

we got away with a poor start with minnesota but this is a different caliber team.....gonna have to step it up

 

[MTOleBlue]

Crappy start yet we are only down 1. Get the jitters out of the way, and let's do this!