23 Jan 2013
Sports Editor
Quentin Hope / Staff Writer
A buzzer-beating basket stole a victory from the Mean Green when Middle Tennessee State University and UNT squared off earlier this season.
That game left a sour taste in the team’s mouth and it hopes to extract revenge in tonight’s matchup.
“It hurts and I hate to lose,” freshman guard Loryn Goodwin said. “That pushes us to want to come back and get a win, especially in front of our home crowd.”
Goodwin has earned a starting role, as she averages 12.1 points per game and leads all freshmen in the nation in steals. Freshman forward Alexis Hyder leads the team in points and rebounds, averaging 13.7 and 7.8 per game, respectively.
“The main thing is focusing on our scout and knowing the players we’re going to play against,” Goodwin said. “And since we’re so young we have to focus on those things more since we are freshman and we have to be ready.”
With two freshmen adding a spark to the team, preparation is key. The lone senior, forward Sara Stanley, said she makes sure the young players are prepared for every game.
“They’re typical freshman,” Stanley said. “But they step up in big ways on the court and we just encourage one another like one big team, no matter the age.”
The Blue Raiders (13-5, 8-1) improved its all-time record to 14-4 against the Mean Green (7-11, 6-3) with the down-to-the-final-second thriller on Dec. 27.
“I feel like [tonight] is going to be a whole different game,” Hyder said. “I feel like they’re going to have to come out with their best game because we’re going to come out with our best game.”
The Mean Green’s last outing, a 79-67 loss to Florida Atlantic University, snapped the team’s five-game win streak. It is looking to improve its perfect Sun Belt Conference home record of 4-0, even though the Blue Raiders are a perfect 4-0 in road conference games this season.
This matchup is set to be another nail-biter, as MTSU combines for 67.2 points per game while holding opponents to only 57.7 per game.
The game will begin at 5 p.m. in the Super Pit and will be the first of the men’s and women’s basketball double-header.
