MURFREESBORO, Tenn. —Bulldozers lined the parking lot of the Murphy Center. Following a day of hard work, they cleared the way for fans to file into the arena for Middle Tennessee's (12-5, 3-1 …
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MURFREESBORO, Tenn.—Bulldozers lined the parking lot of the Murphy Center. Following a day of hard work, they cleared the way for fans to file into the arena for Middle Tennessee's (12-5, 3-1 CUSA) contest against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks (9-7, 1-2). Just like those machines did outside prior to the game, it took good, old-fashioned hard work from its two best scoring machines, Essam Mostafa and Jestin Porter, to help the Blue Raiders to an 81-64 win to continue the best start they've seen under Head Coach Nick McDevitt's tutelage.
Middle Tennessee stormed out of the gate on the offensive end, starting the game 6-for-8 from the field through the first four-plus minutes of play to jump out to a 15-4 lead. Mostafa had a pair of baskets to go with three-pointers from Justin Bufford, Porter and Jlynn Counter to cap off the game-opening run.
Middle Tennessee did end up coming back down to Earth, offensively, to finish the first half, but played great defense, holding Jacksonville State to just 35 percent shooting. The nation's fourth leading scorer, Jaron Pierre Jr, had just three points on 1-of-8 shooting heading into the locker room.
Similarly to Thursday night against Kennesaw State, Mostafa led the charge for the Blue Raiders with 12 points and five rebounds at the break. Guard Porter was also in double figures for Middle Tennessee with 14 points and an assist. Counter had five first-half points to go with a game-high four assists to help MTSU to a 37-27 lead at the half.
The Blue Raiders went to work on the offensive glass to begin the second half, helping them to a 7-2 run and a 56-43 lead with 12:00 to go in the game. After having four offensive boards in the first half, Middle Tennessee jumped out to five within the first 10 minutes of the second half that netted them 12 points in the paint and five second-chance points.
Two of the more important momentum plays in that stretch came from forward Torey Alston, who had a put-back dunk that put the Blue Raiders back up by nine and a layup he hit after grabbing a board over 7-foot Jacksonville State big man Iaroslav Niagu, drawing a foul on the play.
Where Middle Tennessee had its greatest advantage, however, was points in the paint, as they outscored Jacksonville State 36-28 down low. Mostafa led that charge, finishing the game with a season-high 22 points and nine rebounds. The Blue Raiders continued to show they are one of the best teams in the country defending the three, holding Jacksonville State to just four made three-pointers. Though he had a rough first-half, Pierre Jr. wound up being the top scorer for Jacksonville State with 22 points and nine rebounds.
After a tough week last week, Porter responded with perhaps the best two-game stretch of the season. The Houston, Texas, native followed up his season-high 27-point performance against Kennesaw State with a new season-high 29 points tonight. Counter had a near double-double with nine points while setting a career-high with nine assists. Bufford finished the game with a season-high seven rebounds and forward Alston had 11 points and seven rebounds for the Blue Raiders to cap off an undefeated week in conference play.
By the Numbers:
49: With tonight's win, Head Coach Nick McDevitt has tied Randy Wiel for fourth all-time in school history with 49 conference wins.
7: The season-high in rebounds for Justin Bufford, also the amount of 20-plus point games for Jestin Porter, who had a season-high 29 points tonight.
9: Career-high assists for Jlynn Counter
Player's Perspective:
"It's really fun, I haven't had that much fun playing a basketball game in a long time," said guard Jlynn Counter. "I've got to give credit to my teammates, I mean I put them in the position to score but at the end of the day, the ball has to go through the hoop. They just do a great job and they make me look good out there."
McDevitt's Mic:
"Really happy with our win," said head coach Nick McDevitt. "A lot of different contributions from different players. 29 points from Jestin Porter and nine assists with one turnover from Jlynn Counter. Essam (Mostafa) had another really good night and I think Torey is continuing to grow up and be good around the basket. I think our team has done a good job at respecting our opponent and the game and understanding what they've got to do in scout to earn wins."
Up Next
Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky will play in this season's first edition of the 100 Miles of Hate rivalry next Saturday at 5:00 p.m. in the Murphy Center. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and can be heard on WGNS Radio.