MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — The bright lights in Middle Tennessee's Murphy Center flip back on following team introductions on the morning of Nov. 5, 2019, as one of the newest additions to the Blue Raiders, Jo'Vontae Millner, takes his place in center circle to battle for the tip off.
Pregame butterflies reach their crescendo as the referee approaches, ball in hand, to officially start the 2019-20 MT basketball season. The Blue Raiders are facing Maryville College, an NCAA Division III school from just down the road in Maryville, Tennessee.
As the ball goes up, Millner, a junior, leaps right before his counterpart and slaps the ball backwards to point guard Donovan Sims — it's just the first victory of the day for Millner, who goes on to register a double-double in his first game wearing blue and white, 15 points and 13 rebounds.