RUSTON – Louisiana Tech wraps up a three-game home stand on Wednesday when the Bulldogs play host to Middle Tennessee inside the Thomas Assembly Center on Karl Malone Court.
GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Wednesday, Jan. 14 | 6:30 p.m. CT
Location: Thomas Assembly Center
TV: ESPN+
Radio: LA Tech Sports Network | LA Tech Athletics app
Tickets: LATechSports.com/Tickets
ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH (9-7, 2-3 CUSA)
The Bulldogs delivered when it mattered most this past Saturday, rallying late and pulling off a 70-68 overtime win over Delaware to snap a three-game losing streak. The 'Dogs trailed by as much as 12 points before forcing the extra period. In OT, LA Tech ended on a 7-1 run, thanks in large part to
DJ Dudley to hit a game-tying three at 67-67 followed by a go-ahead layup with 22 seconds left.
The team led for just one minute and 31 seconds, the shortest amount of time owning a lead in a win since Jan. 1, 2022, versus WKU (led for 0:26). In what was the largest comeback of the season, LA Tech improved to 21-6 in OT contests in the TAC, having won five straight.
LA Tech got back to owning the paint, outscoring Delaware 34- 22 in that area while also winning the rebounding battle 37-32. In seven of the Bulldogs' nine victories, they have both outscored their opponent in the paint as well as outrebounded them. They have now scored 30+ paint points 11 times this season.
After Delaware shot a staggering 66.7 percent from the field in the first half, LA Tech tightened up defensively to hold the Blue Hens to 32.3 percent shooting in the second half and overtime combined. The Bulldogs have the No. 3 scoring defense in the country, allowing just 60.4 points per game. They also rank fourth in the nation in field goal percentage defense (37.6).
DJ Dudley scored a team-high 17 points against Delaware. LA Tech's leading scorer at 12.4 points per game has led the Bulldogs in scoring in three of the five CUSA games (team-high seven games total). He has been the team's most consistent scorer, reaching double-digit points in 10 of the last 12 contests. During this span, he has averaging 15.1 points.
AJ Bates dished out four more assists versus the Blue Hens, bringing his season total to 89 with an average of 5.6 per game, both of which rank as the third most in CUSA. The sophomore has recorded at least three dimes in 15 of the 16 contests. He is on pace to become the 21st Bulldog in program history to register 100+ assists in a single season.
Jaylen Fenner had his best game as a Bulldog, tying his season high of 15 points (all in the second half) while going 4-of-7 from the field and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. The freshman played a season-high 32 minutes, helping to LA Tech to the comeback win.
ABOUT MIDDLE TENNESSEE (10-6, 4-1 CUSA)
Middle Tennessee enters the week tied for second in the CUSA standings with a 4-1 record. The Blue Raiders held serve at home to start, winning the first three at the Murphy Center. They then split their first road trip this past weekend, falling in overtime 83-80 at UTEP before bouncing back to defeat New Mexico State 59-55. In that game, MTSU erased an early 16-point deficit (20-4) in the opening nine minutes to take the come-from-behind win.
MTSU will pull the trigger from three early and often. LA Tech knows all about that after the Blue Raiders set a single-game program record with 22 made triples in the first meeting. They are currently averaging 28.3 three-point attempts per game, second most in the league and 45th most in the country. As a result, the Blue Raiders are averaging 9.8 made threes per game.
On the flipside, MTSU is stellar at guarding the three-point line. They rank first in CUSA and 14th in the nation in three-point percentage defense, allowing teams to shoot just 28.4 percent from beyond the arc.
Five Blue Raiders are averaging at least nine points per game, led by Kamari Lands who is averaging 12.6 points per contest. In conference play, the CUSA Preseason All-Conference selection has upped his average to 14.0 points, having scored in double figures in four of the five league games.
THE SERIES
LA Tech leads the all-time series versus Middle Tennessee, 17-10. The Bulldogs will be looking for redemption as they suffered their worst CUSA loss ever back on Jan. 2, falling 88-51 to the Blue Raiders in Murfreesboro.
In now their 13th season in the league together, the Bulldogs and Blue Raiders have faced off twice within a season five times. And in all five of those seasons, a team swept both matchups. LA Tech has done so each of the last two seasons.
Since joining CUSA together, LA Tech owns a slim 10-8 advantage in the series. LA Tech has won 11 of the 13 matchups all-time in Ruston over MTSU, including the last two.
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