GAME NOTES: The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders will conclude their regular season slate with a visit to Boca Raton for a Conference USA matchup against the Florida Atlantic Owls.

The Blue Raiders are currently 15-15 overall and 8-9 in conference play. They can finish as high as sixth in the C-USA race with a win and losses by both North Texas and Rice. Jacques Rozier and Gavin Gibson will tie last year's senior class for most wins in program history if the Blue Raiders are able to get past the Owls.

Middle Tennessee's regular season-ending three-game road swing has not gone as planned. The Blue Raiders began the trip with a 100-95 triple-overtime loss at UAB before they were handed a 59-54 setback at FIU on Thursday. Middle Tennessee managed to build a 30-21 halftime lead over the Panthers, but it blew its advantage on the scoreboard as it went just 1-of-12 from 3-point range over the final 20 minutes of regulation. Giddy Potts paced coach Kermit Davis's team with 13 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the field before fouling out. Perrin Buford tallied 12 points and eight boards while Jaqawn Raymond netted 12 points. Reggie Upshaw grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds for Middle Tennessee, which has been led in scoring by 10 different players this season. Upshaw is pacing the team on the campaign with 10.2 points and 5.8 rebounds per tilt. The Blue Raiders usually have an advantage in depth over its opposition. Their bench is outscoring the opposition's reserves by an average of 13.0 ppg.

Middle Tennessee has won six games in a row against the Owls, including three straight victories at FAU Arena. The Blue Raiders' 82-58 rout of FAU in Murfreesboro on Jan. 10 improved them to 13-4 all-time versus the Owls.

Although FAU is not going to qualify for the C-USA Championships due to its 2-15 league record, it has a little momentum going into its regular-season finale after its thrilling, 62-59, victory over UAB on Thursday. Freshman big man C.J. Turman broke a 59-59 tie with one second remaining after he was fouled in the act of dunking to lift FAU over the Blazers and snap the team's 11-game losing streak. Turman finished with team-highs of 13 points and nine boards, while Jackson Trapp and Solomon Poole contributed 11 points apiece.

FAU trailed UAB, 59-56, with less than a minute to go before Javier Lacunza nailed a clutch, game-tying 3-pointer and the Owls came up with a defensive stop to put Turman in position to win the game. Turman has averaged only 5.6 points and 3.3 rebounds while clocking 18.3 minutes per outing this season, but he has posted 25 points, 15 rebounds and a pair of steals over the span of his last two games. Marquan Botley is pacing the team with 13.5 points and 3.9 assists per tilt. Poole (12.4 ppg) and Trapp (10.2 ppg) are also carrying double-digit scoring averages.

Coach Michael Curry was known as a defensive specialist during his tenure as an NBA journeyman. The former Detroit Pistons head coach had to be pleased with his team's defensive showing against UAB, which was limited to a 2-of-10 clip from beyond the arc and a total of seven free-throw attempts.

The Blue Raiders have struggled outside of Tennessee this season. Although FAU's record in unimpressive, the Owls will be a difficult out for the visitors if they can bring the same intensity they displayed versus UAB.