Florida Gulf Coast vs MTSU: Mid-Major Game of the Week
By Bryan Mauro
The mid-major game of the week is between the MTSU Blue Raiders and the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles. Who comes out on top?
The first week of the college basketball season brought us all great games. The top teams in the country have shown that they are there to stay, and it appears a few new teams may surprise some people — both good and bad. There are going to be some premier mid-majors in college basketball this year. Once March rolls around and the NCAA Tournament starts, no one is going to want to see either of the two teams featured in this article.
Florida Gulf Coast Eagles at Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders
When: Tuesday, November 21, 2017
Where: Murphy Athletic Center, Murfreesboro, TN
Time: 7:30 EST
TV: Check Local Listings
Why This Game is Important:
Florida Gulf Coast or Dunk City as they are aptly known, possess arguably one of the more athletic rosters in the mid-major ranks. The Eagles are yet again an offensive juggernaut and the class of the Atlantic Sun conference. Florida Gulf Coast finds scheduling early games against Power 5 conferences difficult because of the difficulty of the matchup, and no Power 5 team wants to play a team of Florida Gulf Coast’s ability if they don’t have to. The Eagles have a chance for a huge win against a Blue Raider team who has the eyes of all teams. Florida Gulf Coast is a serious contender as a second-weekend team.
The Blue Raiders, share the same problem as Florida Gulf Coast. Scheduling is hard for them due to the ability of their team, and the fact they have already shown they can beat the very best Power 5 teams. Middle Tennessee has an explosive offense at times and plays a much different style than that of Florida Gulf Coast. Middle Tennessee likes to shoot threes and work the ball inside to their big man Reggie Upshaw. These contrasting styles and the ability of both teams to never deviate from their style will make for a fast paced and high scoring basketball game.
Key Players:
Zach Johnson- Florida Gulf Coast
Johnson is a typical guard for Florida Gulf Coast. Johnson is not a great shooter but is an expert at getting into the paint and throwing down and earth-shattering dunk. Johnson, like most of the Eagles, will bury teams if they let him get to the rim off of the bounce. The Eagles as a whole are not a team who needs to shoot the ball well to beat anyone. They rely on being physical, creating turnovers so they are able to get easy points in transition, or get into the lane and dunk the ball. The nickname Dunk City was earned and still applies to Florida Gulf Coast today. They are tons of fun to watch and you never know which one of their team members is going to dunk next.
Giddy Potts- Middle Tennessee State
Potts not only has the best name in College Basketball, he is also one of the best shooters in the entire country as well. Potts is the leader of the Blue Raider offense and when working the pick and roll with big man Reggie Upshaw, it usually is run to perfection and that is when the Blue Raiders are at their best. Potts being as lethal as he is from beyond the three-point line can also hurt teams with his passing and ball handling. Potts always seems to make an impact on every game he plays in.
Score Prediction:
The contrasting styles in this game are going to make for a must watch game. The Eagles are going to play their athletic style of dunking, and are extremely hard to keep out of the paint. The Blue Raiders will spread teams out and shoot and make a ton of threes. Just when opponents think they are ready to commit to Middle Tennessee shooting and go guard the three-point line, big man Reggie Upshaw shows up and ruins everyone’s party.
Florida Gulf Coast has been a consistent winning program for the last few years. It all started for the Eagles when they made their magical run to the Sweet 16. Dunk City was born during this run, and since that time the Eagles have been one of the top teams in the Atlantic Sun conference. The Eagles are once again one of the premier mid-major programs in the country, and this year have a potent offense full of athletic kids and high major transfers. Florida Gulf Coast has bulked their team up with transfers from Michigan, Miami, Pittsburgh, and VCU. Those players are going to help the Eagles stay at the top.
Middle Tennessee State just recently dropped a game to Belmont, so they are going to try and come out and prove to the country and themselves that the last two years were not just a fluke.
Next: 68 reasons to be excited for the college basketball season
The Blue Raiders have made believers out of many already, but need to bounce back with a nice win against the athletic Eagles, who are going to win a lot of games. Middle Tennessee at home is a bear for most teams to deal with.
Middle Tennessee- 85 Florida Gulf Coast- 82