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Thursday, January 29
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
7:00 PM ET/6:00 PM ET
Liberty University
18-3,10-0CUSA
81
at
65
Middle Tennessee
11-9,5-4CUSA
1
2
F
Liberty
43
38
81
Middle Tenn.
29
36
65
Metheny, Hot-Shooting Flames Down Blue Raiders 81-65
1/29/2026 10:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Behind a Liberty career-high 29 points from Kaden Metheny and a hot-shooting night, the Flames downed the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders 81-65 on Thursday night at the Murphy Center.
Metheny drilled his first six three-pointers in the first half, and Liberty shot 64 percent in the opening 20 minutes and 61.5 percent for the game on the way to its 12th straight victory.
Liberty improves to 18-3 on the year, a perfect 10-0 in CUSA action and 5-0 in league road games after the 16-point victory. The Flames have topped the Blue Raiders in three straight meetings overall. MTSU drops to 11-9 on the season and 5-4 in league action.
Liberty's 12-game winning streak is tied for the second longest in school history. The last time the Flames won 12 games was during the 2020-21 season (Jan. 16-March 7, 2021).
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Kaden Metheny 29 points (Liberty career high and matched overall career high), 11-14 FG, 6-9 3FG, 5 rebounds, 3 assists; Zach Cleveland 14 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 steals; JJ Harper 13 points, 5-8 FG, 3 rebounds; Brett Decker Jr. 12 points, 5-7 FG; Colin Porter 8 points
Middle Tennessee Individuals: Torey Alston 20 points, 7-10 FG, 12 rebounds; Sean Smith 19 points, 6-11 FG, 4-7 3FG, 3 rebounds, 3 assists; Jahvin Carter 10 points
Key Team Stats: The Flames shot over 60 percent for the third time this season and above 50 percent for the 13th time, connecting on 61.5 percent (32-of-52) from the field. Liberty was also 47.6 percent (10-of-21) from long distance. The Blue Raiders finished the night at 42.6 percent (23-of-54). The Liberty defense limited MTSU to just 32.3 percent in the opening half to open up a 14-point lead, 43-29. The Flames held edges in assists (13-11), points in the paint (44-26), points off turnovers (12-2) and steals (6-3). Middle Tennessee held the advantage in rebounding (33-23), including 12 offensive rebounds. The Blue Raiders led in second chance points (18-0), bench points (25-5) and fast break points (5-4). Liberty only turned the ball over five times, tied for its fewest amount of the season. The Flames have six or less turnovers in four of the last five games. Liberty led for 36:01 of the 40 minutes. MTSU led for 1:24.
Turning Point
Liberty used an early 15-2 run to seize a 17-6 advantage. Kaden Metheny buried back-to-back three-pointers during that run. Metheny added another trio of three on three consecutive Flames possessions later in the half to push the lead to 36-17 with 4:33 on the clock. Metheny hit his sixth three without missing with 55 seconds left in the first half. Liberty took a 43-29 lead into the break, with the redshirt senior Metheny going 6-of-7 from long distance for 19 points in the opening 20 minutes.
The Flames opened the second half on a 6-0 run on a pair of layups from Metheny and one from JJ Harper to take a 49-29 lead with 18:13 remaining. The Blue Raiders slowly began chipping away at the Liberty lead and got as close as eight, 60-52, with 10:29 on the clock following a Jahvin Carter layup. The Flames responded with a 10-0 run in a span of only 1:16 to go up 70-52 with 8:40 on the clock, capped off by a Brett Decker Jr. corner three and a Decker Jr. fast break layup following a Zach Cleveland steal and pass ahead. The visiting Flames kept the lead at 13 or more the rest of the way.
Key Stats & Notes
The Flames' next game is next Wednesday at Delaware (6-14, 2-7 CUSA). Game time is 7 p.m. on ESPN+. Liberty topped Delaware 67-51 last Saturday at Liberty Arena. The two teams will be meeting for the second time in 11 days.
CUSA Championship Ticket Information
Ticket packages for the 2026 CUSA Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are now on sale. Both the Flames and Lady Flames will look to defend their conference tournament titles at Propst Arena in Huntsville, Ala., March 10-14.
Fans can purchase an all-session booklet through the Liberty Ticket Office for $175, a savings of $25. This includes tickets to all nine men's games and all nine women's games throughout the tournament. To purchase tickets and find more information, please visit http://www.libertyflames.com/CUSABasketball.
Students will be able to purchase tickets for the tournaments on a session-to-session basis. These may be purchased at Propst Arena with a valid student ID (of a CUSA school) for half the price of the current day's session.
Metheny drilled his first six three-pointers in the first half, and Liberty shot 64 percent in the opening 20 minutes and 61.5 percent for the game on the way to its 12th straight victory.
Liberty improves to 18-3 on the year, a perfect 10-0 in CUSA action and 5-0 in league road games after the 16-point victory. The Flames have topped the Blue Raiders in three straight meetings overall. MTSU drops to 11-9 on the season and 5-4 in league action.
Liberty's 12-game winning streak is tied for the second longest in school history. The last time the Flames won 12 games was during the 2020-21 season (Jan. 16-March 7, 2021).
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Kaden Metheny 29 points (Liberty career high and matched overall career high), 11-14 FG, 6-9 3FG, 5 rebounds, 3 assists; Zach Cleveland 14 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 steals; JJ Harper 13 points, 5-8 FG, 3 rebounds; Brett Decker Jr. 12 points, 5-7 FG; Colin Porter 8 points
Middle Tennessee Individuals: Torey Alston 20 points, 7-10 FG, 12 rebounds; Sean Smith 19 points, 6-11 FG, 4-7 3FG, 3 rebounds, 3 assists; Jahvin Carter 10 points
Key Team Stats: The Flames shot over 60 percent for the third time this season and above 50 percent for the 13th time, connecting on 61.5 percent (32-of-52) from the field. Liberty was also 47.6 percent (10-of-21) from long distance. The Blue Raiders finished the night at 42.6 percent (23-of-54). The Liberty defense limited MTSU to just 32.3 percent in the opening half to open up a 14-point lead, 43-29. The Flames held edges in assists (13-11), points in the paint (44-26), points off turnovers (12-2) and steals (6-3). Middle Tennessee held the advantage in rebounding (33-23), including 12 offensive rebounds. The Blue Raiders led in second chance points (18-0), bench points (25-5) and fast break points (5-4). Liberty only turned the ball over five times, tied for its fewest amount of the season. The Flames have six or less turnovers in four of the last five games. Liberty led for 36:01 of the 40 minutes. MTSU led for 1:24.
Turning Point
Liberty used an early 15-2 run to seize a 17-6 advantage. Kaden Metheny buried back-to-back three-pointers during that run. Metheny added another trio of three on three consecutive Flames possessions later in the half to push the lead to 36-17 with 4:33 on the clock. Metheny hit his sixth three without missing with 55 seconds left in the first half. Liberty took a 43-29 lead into the break, with the redshirt senior Metheny going 6-of-7 from long distance for 19 points in the opening 20 minutes.
The Flames opened the second half on a 6-0 run on a pair of layups from Metheny and one from JJ Harper to take a 49-29 lead with 18:13 remaining. The Blue Raiders slowly began chipping away at the Liberty lead and got as close as eight, 60-52, with 10:29 on the clock following a Jahvin Carter layup. The Flames responded with a 10-0 run in a span of only 1:16 to go up 70-52 with 8:40 on the clock, capped off by a Brett Decker Jr. corner three and a Decker Jr. fast break layup following a Zach Cleveland steal and pass ahead. The visiting Flames kept the lead at 13 or more the rest of the way.
Key Stats & Notes
- Liberty is 10-0 in conference play for the first time in school history.
- Metheny's 29-point night was his highest scoring output ever as a Flame and his fourth 20-point game of the season. It also matched a career high, which he initially set while at Bowling Green in a game at Eastern Michigan on Feb. 23, 2021.
- The Flames' 12-game winning streak is tied for the second longest in school history. The longest streak in program history is 14 games, established at the start of the 2019-20 season.
- Liberty has won 15 straight games (including postseason competition) against CUSA opponents and is 21-1 in its last 22 games against league foes dating back to last season.
- Zach Cleveland stuffed the stat sheet tonight with 14 points, six rebounds, nine assists and two steals. Cleveland notched his 14th game with seven or more assists this year.
- Brett Decker Jr. (12 points) extended his streak of games in double figures to 21.
- JJ Harper (13 points) scored in double figures for the sixth time in the last seven contests.
- The Flames made 10 three-pointers tonight and have made 38 triples over their last three games.
- Liberty's 16-point win is tied for its largest victory in conference play this year.
The Flames' next game is next Wednesday at Delaware (6-14, 2-7 CUSA). Game time is 7 p.m. on ESPN+. Liberty topped Delaware 67-51 last Saturday at Liberty Arena. The two teams will be meeting for the second time in 11 days.
CUSA Championship Ticket Information
Ticket packages for the 2026 CUSA Men's and Women's Basketball Championships are now on sale. Both the Flames and Lady Flames will look to defend their conference tournament titles at Propst Arena in Huntsville, Ala., March 10-14.
Fans can purchase an all-session booklet through the Liberty Ticket Office for $175, a savings of $25. This includes tickets to all nine men's games and all nine women's games throughout the tournament. To purchase tickets and find more information, please visit http://www.libertyflames.com/CUSABasketball.
Students will be able to purchase tickets for the tournaments on a session-to-session basis. These may be purchased at Propst Arena with a valid student ID (of a CUSA school) for half the price of the current day's session.
Team Stats
Lib
MTSU
FG%
.615
.426
3FG%
.476
.333
FT%
.700
.625
RB
23
33
TO
5
11
STL
6
3
Game Leaders
Pts
29
FGM
11
3FGM
6
FTM
1
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
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