Box Score JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - - Behind the determined play of seniors Jon House (Guelph, Ont., Canada) and Jordan Campbell (Indianapolis, Ind.), Belmont men's basketball defeated East Tennessee State, 72-62, Sunday night.
After Mike Smith got the host Bucs on the board with a three-pointer, House replied with an offensive rebound basket and a three-pointer to put the Bruins on top. The Bruins would not trail again.
House continued his assertive offensive start with a conventional three-point play moments later to give Belmont an 8-5 lead.
Following three-pointers from Campbell and sophomore Brandon Baker (Milford, Ohio), a dunk from Isiah Brown trimmed the margin to 16-13 midway through the first half.
Sophomore Ian Clark (Memphis, Tenn.) then sank a wing three-pointer before sophomore Trevor Noack (Keller, Texas) scored on the offensive glass to push the lead to six.
Junior Drew Hanlen (St. Louis, Mo.) would then steal an ETSU pass on the inbounds play and score at the rim to extend the lead to 23-15 with 8:06 left in the first half.
Two more confident Campbell three-pointers, a Clark conventional three-point play, and a Baker layin capped the 18-7 run to push the Bruins to a 34-20 edge with 2:32 left in the half.
Adam Sollazzo and Micah Williams would enable the Bucs to cut the lead to 37-29 at halftime.
Belmont shot 45 percent (14-for-31) from the field in the opening 20 minutes - including 7-for-15 from three-point distance. House had 10 points at halftime.
Belmont got inside early to start the second half, but two weakside blocks from Brown wiped away potential scores. Sheldon Cooley and Williams would each score baskets to get ETSU within 37-33 with 18:43 to go.
Hanlen would supply a three-pointer and junior Mick Hedgepeth (Crossville, Ala.) would score inside to increase the lead back to 44-36 with 16:51 left.
But Williams simply had the hot hand early in the second half, making five straight tough perimeter shots - including three three-pointers - to keep ETSU around.
Following a Clark three-pointer that gave Belmont a 50-40 edge with 15:29 left, Cooley made two free throws to cap a 12-2 Buc run, tying the score at 52 with 8:50 remaining.
But just as the partisan ETSU crowd rose in unison, a Clark layin and a conventional three-point play from sophomore Kerron Johnson (Huntsville, Ala.) provided a solid Bruin answer.
An acrobatic drive from Cooley got ETSU within 60-58 with 6:31 left, before Belmont rose up once more. After one free throw from junior Scott Saunders (New Orleans, La.), Clark buried a deep wing three-pointer in transition to stretch the lead to 64-58 with 3:58 left.
After several more defensive stops, the seniors delivered two more clutch plays. First, Campbell found House along the baseline for a reverse layin. Then, Campbell sank a baseline three-pointer in front of a jubilant Bruin bench to give Belmont a 69-59 lead with 2:15 to go.
A Mike Smith layin with 30 seconds left ended a six minute field goal drought for the Bucs down the stretch.
Hanlen made three of four free throws in the final 37 seconds to secure the victory.
All told, Belmont shot 46 percent (25-for-55) from the field - including 12-for-26 from three-point distance. Belmont outrebounded ETSU, 34-31.
House led three Bruins in double figures with a season-high 17 points. He added six rebounds and a career-high tying six assists. Clark had 14 points. Campbell had 12 points and five rebounds.
Williams led ETSU (13-8, 8-2) with 22 points.
The Bruins have won nine straight games. ETSU saw its own nine game win streak snapped, and lost for the first time at home this season.
Belmont (18-3, 10-0 Atlantic Sun) returns to action Tuesday, Jan. 25 at Lipscomb. Tip-off is set for 7pm CT. The game will be broadcast live on CSS.
The live play-by-play of Voice of the Bruins Kevin Ingram can be heard on the Bruin Sports Network. Live video streaming will be available via ASun.TV.
