MT hoops: 25 games in

Over the last two seasons, Middle Tennessee basketball has had magical runs.

Anyone who follows college basketball is aware that MT knocked off Michigan State in the big dance two seasons ago. Last season MT walked the walk again, winning the C-USA tournament for the second straight season before defeating Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

For the 2017-2018 campaign, the Blue Raiders entered the season once again with an X on their chest. As things stand now, MT is 25 games into the season and boasting a record of 20-5.

With their toughest stretch of conference games ahead of them, MT will look to finish out the season strong heading into the conference tournament in Frisco, Texas.

Before that all goes down though, let's dive into what the Blue Raiders have accomplished so far.

Right from the jump, MT tested themselves against quality non-conference opponents. They took down the Murray State Racers of the Ohio Valley conference, who are also 20-5 in their first 25 ballgames. They dropped one at home to Belmont by six but then rattled off five victories in a row, including wins over Tennessee State, Florida Gulf Coast (twice), Vanderbilt and Ole Miss.

To be frank, when Belmont defeated MT I thought the Blue Raiders may venture into uncharted waters and possibly hit a losing skid; I was wrong.

MT stepped up their non-conference resume heading to Birmingham to face off with Auburn a team that is currently one of the best in the land. Kermit Davis' squad got buried early but made a late charge to make things real interesting. They ultimately lost that game, 70-76, but it became clear that they could hang with anyone.

MT dove into even deeper non-conference waters, heading to Hawaii for the Diamond Head Classic. In the first round they squared off with Princeton, ultimately winning 69-67. Princeton, albeit not a team with a superb record currently, is a team with an intricate offense that is hard to execute and defend against. The Raiders followed that win up by going tit-for tat and toe to toe with Southern Cal, losing 84-89. Through 26 games USC stands at 17-9 and near the top of the Pac-12.

MT dropped another close one to Miami (Florida) afterwards, 81-84. After that the boys from Murfreesboro headed into Conference-USA league play. There were some questions looming around the Blue Raiders. Yes, they looked impressive at times in non-conference play, but would they be the juggernaut they were the last two seasons in their respective conference?

To answer without beating around the bush, the answer was yes. MT stands pat at 20-5 overall but also 12-1 in conference play. They won their first conference games, defeating UAB (away), FIU (away), FAU (away), Louisiana Tech and Southern Miss, winning by an average of nine points. They did run into a buzzsaw in Huntington, West Virginia, falling to Marshall 63-73, but Marshall is in the top half of C-USA and plays very well on their home floor.

Following that loss, though, there were some who had creeping suspicions that MT may not be the conference goliath anymore. The blueprint to beat them was out there. Mental toughness came into question. But how did the Blue Raiders respond? Well, MTSU absolutely demolished that notion.

Sine their loss to Marshall, MT has won their last seven conference games. They kicked off the seven game winning streak, winning against WKU in a raucous away game environment, 66-62. The Blue Raiders took that momentum they garnered in Diddle Arena and ran with it. Half of the six games after that MT blasted opponents. They beat UTSA by 24, UTEP by 31, and Rice by 19. It was not all chocolates and roses. There have been some closer games. MT won on the road at Old Dominion by 7, at Charlotte by 5, and by 6 against North Texas in the Murphy Center.

MTSU has five games left on their regular season slate. They go on the road to Southern Miss, who is currently 6-7 in C-USA play. They follow that up going to Ruston, Louisiana to take on Louisiana Tech who is also 6-7.

Then there will be a trio of home contests. First it is UAB who currently stands a hair above .500 at 7-6. Then, on the first of March, the Blue Raiders welcome WKU who will have revenge on their mind. WKU is a team that can argue that they can compete and share the floor with MT. MT will look to again dispel that claim.

Then, for the season finale, the tables turn where MT will look to avenge their loss to Marshall in the confines of the Murphy Center.

So far we have skated around the intricacies of this years' Blue Raiders squad. This team has depth and is without a doubt well-rounded. Make no bones about it, though. They are spearheaded by graduate transfer Nick King. King is scorching hot, dropping 21.4 points per game and reeling in 8.2 boards a game. King has been hitting 49 percent of his field goal attempts, but is also a guy who can step out and drill the three-point shots, shooting 36 percent from behind the arc. He can also ice games during crunch time, shooting 77 percent from the charity stripe. King has made a habit of torching opponents, the last victim being North Texas where he dropped 32.

There are three other players who average double digit points. Guard Giddy Potts drops 13 a game, big man Brandon Walters averages 10, while Antwain Johnson averages 10. Going down the stretch, MT will need excellent guard play if they have intentions of making a splash in March. The complete backcourt of Tyrik Dixon, David Simmons, Donovan Sims, Ed Simpson, Antwain Johnson and Giddy Potts need to be on their A-game. It cannot be just a Nick King and Brandon Walters show.

The sad thing about the state of college hoops is that many quality mid-major teams who do not win their conference tournament will get spurned by the NCAA tournament committee. It is very possible that MT could run the table all the way to the conference championship, lose and be relegated to the NIT.