All Hail the Great Kermit Davis!
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders are ranked in the AP Poll for the first time in program history. Davis’s club debuted this week at No. 24, thanks to nine straight wins and a 14-1 record over its last 15 games.
The Blue Raiders are well on their way to their third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and are smack in the middle of the at-large discussion should they fail to claim the Conference USA auto-bid.
Davis had this to say in a press release on Monday:
“You feel so happy for your players with the hard work they’ve put in,” head coach Kermit Davis said. “You also feel great for your fan base and your MT brand, especially when you get ranked this late in the year based on the long haul and what we’ve done. It’s just a really good day for Middle Tennessee basketball.”
If you’re unfamiliar with what Middle Tennessee has done this year, it boasts an impressive resume. The Blue Raiders are 22-5 overall with five KenPom Top 100 wins. They’ve won at Vanderbilt, beaten Ole Miss at home, and won at Western Kentucky and Old Dominion.
Giddy Potts is their most well-known player thanks to his awesome name and past NCAA Tournament success, but transfer Nick King has been the leader this year and is perhaps the best player in CUSA. King is averaging 21.4 points and 8.4 rebounds per game — team highs in both categories.