Box Score KENNESAW, Ga. -- It came down to the wire but an amazing comeback effort by the Belmont women's basketball team (10-19, 7-13 A-Sun) helped them rally for a win in the final minute of regulation on the road at Kennesaw State (9-19, 6-14 A-Sun). The Bruins clinch the No. 6 seed in next week's Atlantic Sun Tournament with the 50-47 victory.
After opening the first stanza with a jumper from junior Haley Nelson (Scottsboro, Ala.), the Bruins fell silent from the hardwood for more than eight minutes. Kennesaw State shot poorly during the span as well, going up 12-2 by the 12 minute mark with all but two points coming from the free-throw line. Finally, sophomore Kristin Nash (Stone Mountain, Ga.) dropped in both at the charity stripe to get BU back on the board. The teams had combined for a mere three field goals and were both shooting less than 20 percent from the floor.
The Bruins put together a quick flurry, opened with a triple by junior Tristan Daniel (Waynesboro, Tenn.) and a jumper from sophomore Alyssa Visbeen (Franklin, Tenn.) to cut the Lady Owls lead down to three, 12-9, with just over 10 minutes left on the clock. Kennesaw State managed to build its largest lead of the half, 23-13, with 5:26 left. Nash drew another foul and netted both attempts at the stripe to cut the lead to eight barely 30 seconds later. Belmont was able to trim the KSU lead down to five, 24-19, by the 1:57 mark after a Nelson jumper from the left elbow and a free-throw by senior Shaunda Strayhorn (Dyersburg, Tenn.). Kennesaw State buried a three but Strayhorn hit the second of two at the stripe to send the teams to the locker rooms separated only by seven points, 27-20.
Senior Whitney Seals (Raceland, Ky.) opened the second stanza with a jumper to help the Bruins begin chipping away at the Lady Owl lead. However, KSU was able to quickly build a nine-point lead, 33-24, with just under 16 minutes on the clock. Belmont worked diligently to narrow the gap and had moved as close as two possessions five minutes later. With 11:28 left on the clock, Visbeen netted a crucial jumper to move Belmont to within four, 35-31. KSU pulled away again with the help of another icy spell from the Bruins and by the 7:12 mark had blown its lead up to nine again, 42-33. BU began the first of several rallies to pull out a win, sparked by a three pointer by freshman Molly Ernst (Louisville, Ky.) that made it a six-point game barely one minute later.
With the ice broken off the rim, Belmont began to surge once again in the final five minutes. Strayhorn and Nelson netted all four attempts at the stripe and Ernst drove for a crucial one-handed lay-in with 3:47 remaining on the clock. Nash knocked down two more at the line to go 6-for-6 for the second consecutive game and move BU to within one, 47-46, thirty seconds later. Over the next three minutes, Kennesaw State missed two, including a block by Nelson with 1:15 left. The Lady Owls called timeout to regroup but the Bruins began to use the clock to their advantage. Senior Tereva Moore (Memphis, Tenn.) battled through the paint for a layup to give BU its first lead since the first 30 seconds of the game, 48-47. Nelson followed with the nail in the coffin, coming up with a steal and a fast break layup in the final 20 seconds to give the Bruins the 50-47 victory.
KSU shot 29.8 percent from the floor, 38.5 percent from three-point range, and 63.6 percent from the free-throw line. The Lady Owls held the advantage in assists, 10-9, blocks, 3-2, and steals, 12-9.
Kennesaw State was led in scoring by Ashley Holliday, who scored 18 points. Sametria Gideon pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.
Belmont shot 32.6 percent from the hardwood, 17.6 percent from behind the three-point arc, and 85 percent from the charity stripe.
Junior Haley Nelson (Scottsboro, Ala.) led the Bruins with 16 points. Senior Shaunda Strayhorn (Dyersburg, Tenn.) and sophomore Kristin Nash (Stone Mountain, Ga.) contributed seven and six points, respectively. Nelson nearly missed a double-double with a team-high nine rebounds.
Belmont returns to action next week in Macon, Ga., for the 2011 Atlantic Sun Tournament. The Bruins clinched the No. 6 seed with Saturday's win and will play a yet to be determined opponent on Thursday, March 3.
