# 2021–22 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball team

The 2021–22 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball team represented Middle Tennessee State University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by fourth-year head coach Nick McDevitt, and played their home games at Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Tennessee as members of Conference USA (C-USA).

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Blue Raiders finished the 2021–22 season 5–18, 3–13 in C-USA play, to finish in sixth place in East Division. In the first round of the C-USA tournament, the Blue Raiders advanced to the second round when FIU was forced to withdraw due to positive COVID-19 tests. In the second round, they lost to North Texas.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Jordan Davis | 0 | G | 6' 3" | 195 | RS Junior | Irmo, SC | Graduate transferred to Jacksonville |
| Tyson Jackson | 4 | F | 6' 9" | 245 | Sophomore | Fairburn, GA | Transferred to New Orleans |
| Jayce Johnson | 13 | G/F | 6' 5" | 210 | Junior | Buffalo, NY | Transfrerred to Siena |
| Jo'Vontae Millner-Criss | 21 | F | 6' 6" | 200 | RS Senior | Burlington, NC | Graduated |
| Marcus Mitchell | 24 | F | 6' 7" | 225 | RS Senior | Memphis, TN | Graduate transferred |
| Dontrell Shuler | 33 | G | 6' 2" | 180 | RS Junior | Irmo, SC | Transferred |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Isaiah Turner | 0 | F | 6' 9" | 215 | Junior | Auburndale, FL | Odessa College |
| Justin Bufford | 4 | G | 6' 7" | | Sophomore | Montgomery, AL | Shelton State CC |
| Josh Jefferson | 11 | G | 6' 2" | 190 | GS Senior | New Albany, IN | Green Bay |
| Camryn Weston | 24 | G | 6' 2" | | Junior | Albany, GA | Southeastern CC |

### 2021 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Teafale Lenard SF | Branson, MO | Link Academy | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | May 27, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 30, 2021. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| November 9, 2021* 5:00 p.m. | | Brescia | W 98–59 | 1–0 | Murphy Center (2,104) Murfreesboro, TN |
| November 12, 2021* 6:00 p.m. | | Bethune–Cookman | W 71–51 | 2–0 | Murphy Center (2,317) Murfreesboro, TN |
| November 16, 2021* 6:00 p.m. | | Winthrop | W 76–65 | 3–0 | Murphy Center (3,212) Murfreesboro, TN |
| November 19, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Stephen F. Austin Cancún Challenge campus-site game | L 74–87 | 3–1 | William R. Johnson Coliseum (1,901) Nacogdoches, TX |
| November 23, 2021* 11:30 a.m., FloHoops | | vs. Rider Cancún Challenge Mayan semifinal | W 60–54 | 4–1 | Hard Rock Hotel Riviera (111) Cancún, Mexico |
| November 24, 2021* 2:00 p.m., FloHoops | | vs. Mercer Cancún Challenge Mayan championship | W 82–58 | 5–1 | Hard Rock Hotel Riviera (103) Cancún, Mexico |
| November 27, 2021* 2:00 p.m. | | Bryan College | W 96–48 | 6–1 | Murphy Center (2,478) Murfreesboro, TN |
| December 1, 2021* 6:00 p.m. | | UT Martin | W 73–61 | 7–1 | Murphy Center (2,512) Murfreesboro, TN |
| December 4, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Murray State | L 87–93 | 7–2 | CFSB Center (4,114) Murray, KY |
| December 11, 2021* 8:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at UT Martin | W 84–75 | 8–2 | Skyhawk Arena (1,218) Martin, TN |
| December 15, 2021* 6:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | | at Ole Miss | L 52–62 | 8–3 | SJB Pavilion (5,902) Oxford, MS |
| December 19, 2021* 2:00 p.m. | | Coastal Carolina | W 84–80 | 9–3 | Murphy Center (2,606) Murfreesboro, TN |
| December 22, 2021* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Chattanooga | L 65–77 | 9–4 | McKenzie Arena (2,730) Chattanooga, TN |
| Conference USA regular season ||||||
| January 6, 2022 7:00 p.m. | | at Rice | L 61–65 | 9–5 (0–1) | Tudor Fieldhouse (500) Houston, TX |
| January 8, 2022 5:00 p.m. | | at North Texas | L 63–70 | 9–6 (0–2) | The Super Pit (3,280) Denton, TX |
| January 13, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Florida Atlantic | W 70–57 | 10–6 (1–2) | Murphy Center (2,515) Murfreesboro, TN |
| January 15, 2022 5:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | FIU | W 50–39 | 11–6 (2–2) | Murphy Center (3,122) Murfreesboro, TN |
| January 22, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Southern Miss | W 74–60 | 12–6 (3–2) | Murphy Center (3,512) Murfreesboro, TN |
| January 27, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Marshall | W 81–79 | 13–6 (4–2) | Cam Henderson Center (3,864) Huntington, WV |
| January 29, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Western Kentucky | W 93–85 | 14–6 (5–2) | E. A. Diddle Arena (4,435) Bowling Green, KY |
| February 5, 2022 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at UAB | L 75–97 | 14–7 (5–3) | Bartow Arena (4,273) Birmingham, AL |
| February 7, 2022 6:00 p.m. | | UTSA Rescheduled from December 30 | W 84–75 | 15–7 (6–3) | Murphy Center (2,802) Murfreesboro, TN |
| February 10, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Old Dominion | W 63–48 | 16–7 (7–3) | Murphy Center (3,645) Murfreesboro, TN |
| February 13, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Charlotte | W 78–63 | 17–7 (8–3) | Murphy Center (3,685) Murfreesboro, TN |
| February 17, 2022 6:00 p.m., Stadium | | at FIU | W 71–65 | 18–7 (9–3) | Ocean Bank Convocation Center (2,783) Miami, FL |
| February 19, 2022 3:00 p.m., CUSA.tv | | at Florida Atlantic | W 87–79 | 19–7 (10–3) | FAU Arena (1,977) Boca Raton, FL |
| February 21, 2022 6:00 p.m. | | UTEP Rescheduled from January 1 | W 77–59 | 20–7 (11–3) | Murphy Center (4,211) Murfreesboro, TN |
| February 24, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Marshall | W 74–65 | 21–7 (12–3) | Murphy Center (4,505) Murfreesboro, TN |
| February 26, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Western Kentucky | W 69–52 | 22–7 (13–3) | Murphy Center (6,192) Murfreesboro, TN |
| March 2, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Charlotte | L 56–60 | 22–8 (13–4) | Dale F. Halton Arena (3,070) Charlotte, NC |
| March 5, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Old Dominion | L 64–68 | 22–9 (13–5) | Chartway Arena (5,230) Norfolk, VA |
| Conference USA tournament ||||||
| March 10, 2022 5:30 p.m., Stadium | (E1) | vs. (W4) UTEP Quarterfinals | W 66–59 $^{OT}$ | 23–9 | Ford Center at The Star Frisco, TX |
| March 11, 2022 2:00 p.m., CBSSN | (E1) | vs. (W2) UAB Semifinals | L 98–102 $^{3OT}$ | 23–10 | Ford Center at The Star Frisco, TX |
| CBI ||||||
| March 19, 2022 4:00 pm, FloHoops | (2) | vs. (15) California Baptist First round | W 64–58 | 24–10 | Ocean Center (578) Daytona Beach, FL |
| March 21, 2022 6:00 pm, FloHoops | (2) | vs. (10) Boston University Quarterfinals | W 76–46 | 25–10 | Ocean Center (706) Daytona Beach, FL |
| March 22, 2022 8:30 pm, ESPN2 | (2) | vs. (6) Abilene Christian Semifinals | W 85–69 | 26–10 | Ocean Center (633) Daytona Beach, FL |
| March 23, 2022 5:00 pm, ESPN2 | (2) | vs. (9) UNC Wilmington Championship | L 90–96 $^{2OT}$ | 26–11 | Ocean Center (624) Daytona Beach, FL |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central. ||||||
Sources: