Box Score CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- The Belmont women's basketball team (2-2) was unable to sustain its fast start on the road Sunday afternoon at Chattanooga (2-1). The Mocs used a push in the final three minutes at the free-throw line to hold off the Bruins, 76-65.
Chattanooga jumped out to an early 5-0 lead before redshirt freshman Frankie Joubran (Detroit, Mich.) netted a pair at the charity stripe to get the Bruins on the board two minutes in. BU continued to excel at the stripe, going 6-for-6 in the first nine minutes with sophomore Blair Bryce (Red Oak, Texas) and junior Jordyn Luffman (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) hitting both attempts. UTC fell silent from the hardwood for upwards of five minutes, thanks to solid Bruin D, helping BU pull away 15-9, with just under 11 minutes remaining on the clock.
The Mocs responded with a 12-4 run to go up 21-19, taking their first lead since the opening minutes, by the 5:53 mark. However, the Bruins dug in their heels and saw a jumper by junior Katie Carroll (Lilburn, Ga.) and a triple from the top of the arc by Bryce put them on top 24-21 with just over five minutes on the clock before the break.
On an inbounds pass from junior Adrienne Tarrence (Bowling Green, Ky.), classmate Torie Vaught (Maryville, Tenn.) literally caught and drained a three from the corner to give Belmont a 29-23 lead with 2:13 on the clock. Chattanooga trimmed the BU lead to four less than a minute later but the Bruins exploded again offensively, closing the half with a 7-2 run to take a 36-27 advantage in the locker room.
The Mocs started the second half much more aggressively, opening with a 7-0 run to close the deficit to four, 38-34, by the 17:18 mark. Finally, a jumper from the left elbow by Joubran got the Bruins on the board in the second stanza. Four minutes later, Faith Dupree got hot and helped Chattanooga to move within four, 46-42, by the 13:12 mark.
UTC went on to knot the score at 46 with 90 seconds later, taking advantage of an icy shooting spell by the Bruins that lasted nearly three minutes. The score was tied once again, this time at 48, before Chattanooga took the lead 53-50 on a pair of free throws by Dupree.
BU hustled to close the differential and by the 9:00 mark, had made it a one-point game, 55-54, after a turnaround jumper in the lane by Luffman. A turn-and-shoot jumper by Joubran knotted the game at 56 with 7:19 remaining. Chattanooga surged again behind Dupree and went up by five, 63-58, with 4:34 left in regulation.
Belmont moved as close as three on free throws by Luffman but the Mocs went on to take advantage of a two and half minute scoring drought by the Bruins, building a nine-point lead, 69-60. With both teams in the double bonus, every trip to the stripe mattered down the stretch. Back-to-back trips by Luffman and freshman Lauren Thompson (Franklin, Tenn.) added four points to BU's tally and moved the point differential to just five points but that would be as close as the Bruins would come. UTC closed the game on a 7-1 run, sealing the 76-65 win.
Despite the loss, Bryce was encouraged by BU's showing. "We played really hard the entire game. We came out strong in the first half and showed we can play with bigger teams like this. We are still learning and I'm confident we can take good things away from today."
Chattanooga shot 48.2 percent from the floor, an icy 20 percent from three-point range and 73.1 percent from the free-throw line. The Mocs held the advantage in assists, 17-11, blocks, 7-1, and steals, 5-4.
UTC was led in scoring by Faith Dupree, who scored 21 points. Also reaching double figures were Taylor Hall with 17 and Alicia Payne, Meghan Downes and Tatianna Jackson with 10 points each. Hall led the team in rebounds with nine.
BU shot 37 percent from the hardwood, 20 percent from behind the three-point arc, and 84.6 percent from the charity stripe. The Bruins held the advantage in rebounds, 37-33.
Luffman notched her second double-double of the season with a career-high 18 points and game-high 11 rebounds. Bryce and junior Tarrence each added nine points.
Belmont returns to action on Tuesday, November 19 at the Curb Event Center. The Bruins host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi beginning at 6 p.m. The game can be seen live on the OVC Digital Network and heard live via the internet on the Bruins Sports Network. Live stats will be available and a live Twitter feed (@BelmontWBB) will also be available.
