1981–82 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball team

The 1981–82 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball team represented Middle Tennessee State University during the 1981–82 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Blue Raiders, led by third-year head coach Stan Simpson, played their home games at the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and were members of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 22–8, 12–4 in OVC play to finish third in the regular season standings. In the OVC tournament, they defeated Murray State, Tennessee Tech, and Youngstown State to receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As the No. 11 seed in the Mideast region, they upset No. 6 seed Kentucky, 50–44,[1] in the opening round before losing to No. 3 seed, and eventual Final Four participant, Louisville, 81–56.[2]

1981–82 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball
OVC tournament champions
NCAA tournament, Second Round
ConferenceOhio Valley Conference
Record22–8 (12–4 OVC)
Head coach
Home arenaMurphy Center
Seasons
1981–82 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Western Kentucky 13 3   .813 19 10   .655
Murray State 13 3   .813 20 8   .714
Middle Tennessee State 12 4   .750 22 8   .733
Morehead State 11 5   .688 17 10   .630
Tennessee Tech 8 8   .500 12 14   .462
Youngstown State 5 11   .313 8 18   .308
Austin Peay 4 12   .250 6 20   .231
Akron 3 13   .188 7 19   .269
Eastern Kentucky 3 13   .188 5 21   .192
1982 OVC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Roster

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1981–82 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 44 Jerry Beck 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr George Washington Danville, Virginia
Head coach
  • Stan Simpson
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
Nov 27, 1981*
vs. Chattanooga
Coors Classic
L 54–62  0–1
Gentry Complex 
Nashville, Tennessee
Nov 28, 1981*
vs. Austin Peay
Coors Classic
W 54–51  1–1
Gentry Complex 
Nashville, Tennessee
Dec 3, 1981*
South Alabama W 71–69 OT 2–1
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Dec 5, 1981*
Tennessee State L 55–60  2–2
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Dec 10, 1981
at Morehead State W 64–59  3–2
(1–0)
Ellis Johnson Arena 
Morehead, Kentucky
Dec 12, 1981
at Eastern Kentucky W 69–51  4–2
(2–0)
Alumni Coliseum 
Richmond, Kentucky
Dec 17, 1981*
Georgia State W 62–49  5–2
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Dec 19, 1981
Tennessee Tech W 88–63  6–2
(3–0)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Dec 21, 1981*
Samford W 67–63 OT 7–2
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Dec 30, 1981*
Detroit W 64–62 OT 8–2
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Jan 4, 1982*
at Xavier W 69–48  9–2
Schmidt Fieldhouse 
Cincinnati, Ohio
Jan 7, 1982
Akron W 83–62  10–2
(4–0)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Jan 9, 1982
Youngstown State W 73–56  11–2
(5–0)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Jan 14, 1982
at Western Kentucky L 49–65  11–3
(5–1)
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Jan 16, 1982*
at Tennessee State W 70–68 OT 12–3
Gentry Complex 
Nashville, Tennessee
Jan 21, 1982
Murray State L 58–59  12–4
(5–2)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Jan 23, 1982
Austin Peay W 64–52  13–4
(6–2)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Jan 27, 1982*
at Oral Roberts L 73–83  13–5
Mabee Center 
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Jan 30, 1982
at Tennessee Tech L 61–75  13–6
(6–3)
Eblen Center 
Cookeville, Tennessee
Feb 4, 1982
at Akron W 65–53  14–6
(7–3)
James A. Rhodes Arena 
Akron, Ohio
Feb 6, 1982
at Youngstown State W 73–67  15–6
(8–3)
Beeghly Center 
Youngstown, Ohio
Feb 13, 1982
Western Kentucky L 64–75  15–7
(8–4)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Feb 18, 1982
at Murray State W 70–53  16–7
(9–4)
Racer Arena 
Murray, Kentucky
Feb 20, 1982
at Austin Peay W 67–56  17–7
(10–4)
Dunn Center 
Clarksville, Tennessee
Feb 25, 1982
Morehead State W 63–52  18–7
(11–4)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Feb 27, 1982
Eastern Kentucky W 62–55  19–7
(12–4)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
OVC tournament
Mar 5, 1982*
(3) vs. (2) Murray State
Semifinals
W 56–54 OT 20–7
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Mar 6, 1982*
(3) at (1) Western Kentucky
Championship game
W 54–52  21–7
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, Kentucky
NCAA tournament
Mar 11, 1982*
(11 ME) vs. (6 ME) No. 15 Kentucky
First round
W 50–44  22–7
Memorial Gymnasium 
Nashville, Tennessee
Mar 13, 1982*
(11 ME) vs. (3 ME) No. 20 Louisville
Second round
L 56–81  22–8
Memorial Gymnasium 
Nashville, Tennessee
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
ME=Mideast Source[3][4].
All times are in Central Time.

Awards and honors

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References

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  1. ^ "Raiders claw Cats 50-44 in first-ever NCAA Tournament win". Middle Tennessee State University. March 15, 1982. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  2. ^ "Indiana Eliminated; Louisville a Winner". The New York Times. March 14, 1982. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  3. ^ "2019-20 Middle Tennessee Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Middle Tennessee State University Athletics. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  4. ^ "1981-82 Men's Basketball Schedule". Middle Tennessee State University Athletics. Retrieved May 21, 2023.