Nick King
The Blue Raiders took a 5–1 record into a December schedule packed full of challenges.
With victories over Florida Gulf Coast, Vanderbilt and Ole Miss, the Blue Raiders stretched their win streak to five games. However, that streak ended when they finished their tour of the SEC in a narrow road loss to Auburn.
Middle Tennessee then took a Christmas vacation to Hawaii to compete in the Diamond Head Classic in which there was no shortage of competitive opponents. After earning a two-point victory over Princeton, the Blue Raiders advanced to the tournament semifinals to play Southern California.
Middle led through most of the first half, and held onto the lead at halftime. Despite another incredible performance from Nick King (28 points, 11 rebounds), USC took the lead late in the second half and never relinquished it, winning 89–84.
King came back strong in the consolation game against #15 Miami, but his 28 points and eight rebounds would not be enough in this one either. Miami narrowly escaped with a win, 84–81.
The Blue Raiders finally returned to Murphy Center on Dec. 30 to open C-USA play against UAB, and King continued his scorching hot play. The graduate transfer dropped 30 points on the Blazers and raked in eight rebounds.
Giddy Potts had his best game of the season, notching 19 points and eight rebounds of his own.
Giddy Potts – Photo courtesy of goblueraiders.com
Potts, whose senior season has not gone to script thus far, showed some improvement in December over his November output. He increased his scoring by four points per game, increased his field goal percentage by two points and his three-point field goal percentage by 11 points.
Meanwhile, King is putting forth a performance worthy of C-USA Player of the Year. King leads the league in scoring, and ranks top 10 in the league in rebounding.
Going into 2018, the Blue Raiders appears to be primed to once again win the C-USA basketball title. However, they will need to see continued improvement from Potts, and will need to establish a consistent third option if they are sure to three-peat.
The Blue Raiders will return to Murphy Center for the first time in over a month when they host LA Tech on Jan. 11. Other C-USA opponents appearing in Murfreesboro this month include Southern Miss on Jan. 13, UTSA on Jan. 25 and UTEP on Jan. 27.
