{"id":28190,"date":"2020-01-06T09:08:58","date_gmt":"2020-01-06T14:08:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/?p=28190"},"modified":"2020-01-06T09:08:58","modified_gmt":"2020-01-06T14:08:58","slug":"mid-major-takeaways-week-nine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2020\/01\/06\/mid-major-takeaways-week-nine\/","title":{"rendered":"Mid-Major Takeaways: Week Nine"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the calendar switched to a new year and a new decade, it also signified the end of non-conference play. Outside of late January’s SEC\/Big 12 challenge, the next games between non-conference foes will occur in March. Mid-major programs performed well throughout their non-conference slates. Upsets have been occurring at an unusual rate<\/a>, and this past week gave us one more taste. We also had quite a few mid-major players have some great scoring performances.<\/p>\n

Mid-Major Week Nine Takeaways<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Florida Fireworks<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A pair of mid-major Florida schools went on the road and pulled off massive upsets just in time to celebrate the new year.<\/p>\n

Stetson, out of the Atlantic Sun, took down South Carolina last Monday 63-56. This was the Hatters’ first victory over an SEC opponent since 2004 and first over a power-five school since 2010. Stetson suffocated the Gamecocks defensively, holding them to 37 percent shooting from the field, including 2-10 in the game’s final five minutes. Stetson led for all but 3:42 in the game. Christiaan Jones<\/strong><\/a> led all Hatters with 18 points in his first game since November 18th. Jones scored most of his points from the charity stripe, going 10-13.<\/p>\n

Florida A&M made their own noise on New Year’s Eve, defeating Iowa State 70-68 on the road. This was the Rattlers’ first-ever win over a power conference opponent. Florida A&M was a 25.5 point underdog, making them the fourth team to win a game against that large of a point spread this season. They had been 0-106 against major conference teams since 1984-85, which was the third-longest streak ever by a Division I team. Rod Melton Jr.<\/strong><\/a> scored 20 points to lead the Rattlers, including the game-winning basket with ten seconds remaining.<\/p>\n

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The morning after – Headlines from last night\u2019s HUGE win over Iowa State! Welcome 2020\ud83d\udc0d\ud83d\udc0d\ud83d\udc0d #FangsUp<\/a> #FAMU<\/a> #strikestrikestrikeagain<\/a> #WeAreFAMU<\/a> #FAMULY<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/RfQXQQedbp<\/a><\/p>\n

— Florida A&M Athletics (@FAMUAthletics) January 1, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n