Aldo Giovanni Amato

USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee

MURFREESBORO — The MTSU men's basketball team is ranked in the Top 25 for the first time in school history.

The Blue Raiders (27-4,17-1 Conference USA) were ranked No. 25 in the USA Today Coaches Poll on Monday following their regular-season finale Saturday.

MTSU, which got 20 points in the poll last week, moved up four spots after receiving 30 this week.

"I am just awfully proud of the work these guys have put in," coach Kermit Davis said. "It's great for the Middle Tennessee brand, the fans and this university."

Other coaches who vote in the weekly poll must've heard Davis after Saturday's win over Florida Atlantic when Davis said he'd "give anything for MTSU to be ranked."

"Just to be ranked in the last regular-season poll by these coaches that have seen your whole body of work means something," Davis said on Monday. "For a guy like me (who) has been invested for 15 years and see how much our program has grown.

"I am just so proud for our university."

Although this is the first time MTSU has been ranked in the Top 25, the Blue Raiders have picked up votes since early December in both the USA Today Coaches and AP Top 25 polls.

MTSU picked up 28 points in the AP Top 25 released Monday, which would put it 26th in the country.

Earlier in the season, Davis said he'd like for MTSU to become the next Butler, VCU or Gonzaga, a mid-major program that is constantly on the national scene.

Davis said that Monday's ranking was only a step toward that goal, but an important step nonetheless.

"It's another great step to gain national recognition," Davis said. "It's a good feeling and another step towards where we want to go."

MTSU won the Conference USA regular-season title outright last week ahead of its conference tournament, which begins Thursday in Birmingham, Ala.

The Blue Raiders won the conference tournament last year, advanced to the NCAA Tournament and shocked No. 2-seeded Michigan State in the program's biggest win.

After Saturday's win over FAU, MTSU set a C-USA men's basketball mark for most conference wins in a single season and placed three players (JaCorey Williams, Giddy Potts and Reggie Upshaw) on all-conference lists.

NEXT GAME

No. 25 MTSU (27-4, 17-1 C-USA) vs. WKU or UTSA

When: 11:30 a.m. Thursday

Where: Legacy Arena (Birmingham, Ala.)