Shawn Jones scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, as Middle Tennessee dominated Texas Southern 79-53 Saturday night in nonconference action.
Marcos Knight had 14 points and eight rebounds, and Neiko Hunter chipped in with 13 points for the Blue Raiders.
Middle Tennessee (4-1) led 18-12 with 12 minutes left in the first half and extended it with a 23-8 run to close it.
Jones finished the first half with 15 points and six rebounds to help Middle Tennessee take a 41-20 lead into halftime.
Texas Southern (1-5) cut the lead to 19, 22-41 early in the second period, but Middle Tennessee answered with 6 straight points to push the lead to 26, 48-22. The Tigers never made it a contest.
Lawrence Johnson-Danner came off the bench to lead Texas Southern with 14 points, and Kyrie Sutton and Raymond Penn had 10 points apiece.
