Western Kentucky Preview

The 2021 edition of the 100 Miles of Hate rivalry arises this weekend. The 3-7 (1-3 in C-USA) Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders will host 11-4 (4-2) Western Kentucky Hilltoppers.

Coach Rick Stansbury continues to acquire four and five-star talent uncharacteristically to C-USA standards. As a result, his team has a record of 78-39 in the past three and a half seasons. This team might be his most talented yet, led by junior center Charles Bassey.

Bassey is a former five-star recruit and likely a future NBA draft pick. According to NCAA.com, he is 4th in country in blocks as well as 3rd in rebounds. He is also averaging 17.6 points per outing, ranking 5th in C-USA. WKU also has two senior studs in guard Taevion Hollingsworth (2017 Mr. Basketball winner in Kentucky), and athletic wing Josh Anderson (former top 75 recruit).

There is no denying that the Blue Raiders face a major challenge this weekend. Their offense remains ice cold, Western Kentucky is the most talented team they have seen (and possibly will see this year), and they present a terrible matchup. Western Kentucky is extremely good at rebounding and finishing in the paint, and Middle Tennessee's only reliable center this year has been 6'6 DeAndre Dishman. WKU doesn't shoot a lot of 3's, which is becoming the only area the Blue Raiders have defended well this season (albeit extremely well).

My thought is to play very small lineups against WKU. When Dishman sees the court, settle him at the high block. I would play a lot of JV Millner-Criss and Tyler Millin at the 5 too, and have them spot up on the perimeter. The point is to get Bassey out from under the basket and limit his rebounding and shot-blocking ability. Jared Coleman-Jones and Tyson Jackson simply don't have a prayer trying to contain him, so Coach McDevitt must think outside the box to have a chance at the upsets.

As mentioned in the Southern Miss Recap, MTSU severely disappointed last weekend in Hattiesburg and lost ground not only in the conference standings, but also optimism on the rest of the season's outlook. Getting just one win this weekend against their arch rivals would salvage a lot of the ground lost on both fronts. However as you can tell at this point, it will be much easier said than done.

Saturday's game starts at 4 pm CT and will be broadcasted through ESPN+. Sunday's will begin at 1 pm on CBSSN.