Liberty (17-13, 6-9) lost to Middle Tennessee (13-17, 7-8), 69-61, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee on Tuesday night.
“It’s the same old song, right?,” Liberty head coach Ritchie McKay said. “I think our guys are giving great effort, trying really hard. We had flashes of brilliance and we looked like a better version of ourselves on multiple possessions, but 13 first half turnovers. In the second half, I thought they got to the lane a little too easy on us. We then started to try to play around them. You can’t do that at this level. You’ve got to be able to threaten the rim as well as behind the arc.”
The Flames made 11 straight field goals early in the first half, grabbing a 10-point lead. From there, things went downhill for the visitors in Tennessee. Liberty made just 1 of 7 field goals in the final 9:35 of the first half as the Blue Raiders took control of the game. MTSU utilized an 18-3 run in the second half to gain some separation, pushing their lead to double figures where it remained much of the second half.
Cleveland led the team with 17 points on 7 of 8 shooting from the field. He was just 3/7 from the free throw line and had 6 turnovers. Kyle Rode added 12 points and 13 rebounds. He was 4 of 13 from three. Brody Peebles got into double figures with 10 points.
Liberty will conclude the regular season on Saturday afternoon during Senior day. The Flames take on Western Kentucky with tip scheduled for 1 p.m.
FLAMES PLAYED WELL IN CERTAIN AREAS, STRUGGLED IN OTHERS
For much of the game Liberty shot over 50% from the field and was even over 60% for a good chunk of the first half. The team would finish the game shooting a respectable 49% from the field but only made 7 of 25 from three and 6 of 11 from the free throw line. The Flames also had 15 turnovers in the game, 13 of those coming in the first half.
Liberty owned the paint, something a bit uncommon for this team, outscoring the Blue Raiders, 34-22, in the paint. MTSU outscored Liberty 9-2 in second chance points and 15-0 in fast break points.
INCONSISTENT PLAY CONTINUES
Liberty continues to be an inconsistent team this season. It was just a few weeks ago where the Flames defeated this same Middle Tennessee team by 35 points, 88-53, at Liberty Arena. Now, the Flames fall by 9 points to the Blue Raiders on the road.
Liberty concludes their play on the road in CUSA action with a 1-7 mark.
“We talk about what we’re grateful for,” McKay said of his message to the team in the locker room following the game. “We realize we have some areas to improve in but I love our guys in the locker room. We’re not ever going to be identified by the outcome. We weren’t when we were victorious and cutting nets, and we won’t when we lose four out of five or we don’t finish where our expectations are in the standings. That’s just who we are as a program. Don’t get me wrong, we are fighting with an urgency to get better. Realignment has challenged us a bit. We understand it. Our guys keep fighting. They won’t give up and I won’t give up on them.”
FIRST LOSING CONFERENCE RECORD UNDER McKAY
For the first time in 11 seasons under head coach Ritchie McKay, Liberty will finish with a losing record in conference play. At 6-9, the best the Flames can do is get to 7-9 with a win over Western Kentucky on Saturday.
The last time Liberty finished with a losing record in conference play came during the 2014-15 season, the last year under former head coach Dale Layer. The Flames were 2-16 in the Big South that season.
“It’s a proud program,” said McKay. “Don’t get me wrong, we walk in humility, but we play with a great sense of pride. We play the game the right way. There’s some things that you don’t know until you know them. There’s a lot of programs around the country that don’t go to the NCAA Tournament every year or don’t go to postseason or don’t win 20 games. We’ve been able to do it for however many years, but we’re not having one of those seasons right now. That doesn’t’ make us worthless. It doesn’t decrease our value, and it doesn’t disassemble our pursuit. We are going to keep believing in ourselves and keep trying to figure out solutions to win the game. At the same time, we’re going to learn from failure instead of be crippled by it.”
