Middle Tennessee faces UTEP in conference showdown

UTEP Miners (15-6, 5-3 CUSA) at Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (14-7, 5-3 CUSA)

Murfreesboro, Tennessee; Saturday, 3 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Middle Tennessee hosts UTEP in a matchup of CUSA teams.

The Blue Raiders are 8-2 on their home court. Middle Tennessee is sixth in the CUSA scoring 76.6 points while shooting 45.9% from the field.

The Miners are 5-3 against CUSA opponents. UTEP has a 4-1 record in games decided by 3 points or fewer.

Middle Tennessee is shooting 45.9% from the field this season, 1.7 percentage points higher than the 44.2% UTEP allows to opponents. UTEP averages 73.4 points per game, 3.1 more than the 70.3 Middle Tennessee gives up.

The Blue Raiders and Miners face off Saturday for the first time in CUSA play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Jlynn Counter is averaging 10.5 points and 3.2 assists for the Blue Raiders. Jestin Porter is averaging 16 points over the last 10 games.

David Terrell Jr. is averaging 7.9 points and 3.3 assists for the Miners. Otis Frazier III is averaging 15.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.4 steals over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Blue Raiders: 6-4, averaging 70.6 points, 32.5 rebounds, 11.3 assists, 7.0 steals and 4.3 blocks per game while shooting 44.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 70.0 points per game.

Miners: 7-3, averaging 72.8 points, 27.9 rebounds, 14.5 assists, 11.0 steals and 3.1 blocks per game while shooting 43.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 71.6 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.