3-2-1 for MT hoops

This past week the Blue Raiders turned their attention to a pair of non-conference foes. On Wednesday night MT squared off with Belmont at the Curb Event Center and Saturday they made the trek to Virginia to face VCU. As always, we look at three things we learned, two questions we have and one prediction moving forward.

MT stubbed their toe against VCU after Beating Belmont

Losses are bound to occur during the course of a college basketball season. The Blue Raiders rolled into Richmond, Virginia with a stellar 10-1 record. Prior to the game, MT made the matchup more enticing after defeating the Belmont Bruins at the Curb Event Center, 79-66, earlier in the week. The Blue Raiders met their match against the 7-3 Rams, though. MT walked into the lion’s den versus a salty VCU squad and showed some real toughness by weathering an early storm in front of a raucous crowd. In the end, the Blue Raiders dropped the contest, losing 80-77. It is not the end of the world, however. Every college team accumulates some bumps and bruises along the way, and this years Blue Raider squad is no different. They’ll learn from this one though, and ultimately, I think they’ll be better because of it.

Blue Raiders not afraid to schedule tough out of conference games.

The biggest takeaway from the early part of the season is that head coach Kermit Davis is not afraid to have his boys lace them up against quality OOC opponents. Just take a look at the gauntlet that MT had to run through early on in the 2016-2017 hoops season (each teams current RPI rank in parenthesis). They faced the likes of Tennessee State (63), UNC Wilmington (18), Ole Miss (39), Vanderbilt (73), Belmont (155), and VCU (22). Davis was bold for taking his troops to places like Belmont and VCU, and looked to make a point of having his team face stiff competition this year as a means of preparing them for their conference slate.

MTSU is a legit top tier team in C-USA

Make no bones about it, MT is one of the best teams in Conference USA. Even though conference play has yet to start, there is not a shadow of doubt about the talent on the roster for the Blue Raiders. This past week the Blue Raiders had a top 10 RPI, extremely impressive to say the least. They have faced some teams so far that are better than many of the teams they will square off with in conference play. It won’t be a cakewalk in the C-USA, though. Look out for teams like Rice, La Tech, Old Dominion, WKU and UAB – all of which could give MT a run for their money on any given night.

What are the effects of the loss?

One of the questions surrounding this team is whether they can get up off the mat, bounce back and get back to their winning ways. It’s a question for them because, frankly, they haven’t really lost this year. Perseverance is a calling card of elite basketball teams. Can MT respond positively after the road loss? Will the loss be a blow to the psyche? Sometimes a loss can be beneficial and bring a successful team back to Earth. Will MT learn from the tale of the tape? Can they utilize the VCU game as a learning experience?

Will MT need to rack up style points in C-USA play?

Often in sports you hear about teams needing to rack up style points in order to sit pretty for postseason play. You hear about college football teams needing to pile on “style points” in order to look better in the eyes of the playoff committee. The same can be said for college basketball. C-USA will likely have one, possibly two, bids for the NCAA Tournament. As the Blue Raiders close in on their conference slate, will MT need to obliterate and destroy teams in order to get an at-large bid, providing they don’t win the conference tournament in March?

MT will bounce back after a tough road loss

My prediction is that MTSU will gather themselves and get back in a winning rhythm, starting with Georgia State on the 21st.