2008 Woodie Awards
Blue Raiders end 14-game home win streak
Richard Lowe
Issue date: 12/3/07 Section: Sports
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Houston (7-1) nailed 16 of its 30 3-point tries against the Blue Raiders (2-5) en route to an 83-68 victory. In fact, the Cougars had a higher percentage from behind the arc than inside it; they were 8 of 17 on two-point field goals.
Senior guard Robert McKiver led the way for the Cougars, contributing 32 points. McKiver knocked down nine 3's, tying his own school record. This is the third time in his career McKiver has hit nine 3-pointers in one game and the second time this season.
McKiver's long-range accuracy put the game out of reach for the Blue Raiders in the first half. At one point, he hit five 3-point field goals in a row which increased the Houston lead from 21-15 to 36-17. From there, MT was unable to pull within 15 points.
"We knew he was a talent coming in and he showed what he can do when he gets on a roll," MT head coach Kermit Davis said. "He single-handedly turned the game in their favor with those five straight 3-pointers late in the first half and a lot of those shots were contested. He was the difference tonight."
Sophomore forward Desmond Yates led MT in scoring, chipping in 21 points while also contributing four rebounds. Junior guard Demetrius Green was the only other Blue Raider to score in double digits, scoring 11 points to go along with a team-leading eight rebounds and four assists.
Kevin Kanaskie, MT's leading scorer coming into the game, was held to just eight points on three of eight shooting. Kanaskie didn't score in the first half and took only two shots in the first frame. Before the game Kanaskie was averaging 11.2 points per game.
One bright spot for the Blue Raiders was their resilience on the boards. Heading into the game, MT was getting out-rebounded by its opponents by an average margin of 7.2 rebounds per game. However, the Blue Raiders actually came out on the winning side of the rebound battle, collecting 31 boards compared to the Cougars' 28. MT also grabbed eight offensive rebounds to contrast Houston's six.
"I thought our team made some strides tonight and we just have to continue working and seeing progress and we will be OK," Davis said. "We were much better on the boards and there were signs of improvement so that's encouraging."
The loss was the Blue Raiders' third straight road defeat as MT has yet to win outside of the Murphy Center. Even worse for the Blue Raiders is the fact that all three road losses have come by margins of 15 points or more, including a 109-40 loss to Tennessee. When playing outside of Murfreesboro this season, MT has lost by an average of 35.6 points.
The Blue Raiders will return to the Murphy Center on Dec. 12 to play a grudge match with in-state rival Belmont. The Bruins defeated MT 85-62 in Nashville on Nov. 26. The Bruins are coming off a 90-49 loss at the hands of Xavier. The game is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
Information for the article provided by GoBlueRaiders.com.
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