Box Score NASHVILLE, Tenn. – After battling to overcome a double digit deficit late in the second half, the Belmont women's basketball team (15-11, 9-4 OVC) saw its huge comeback rally fall just short at crosstown rival Tennessee State (11-12, 7-5 OVC) on Saturday night. The Bruins were held off 54-53 after a shot at the buzzer rimmed out.
TSU opened with a 6-0 run before seniors Katie Brooks (Maryville, Tenn.) and Alyssa Visbeen (Franklin, Tenn.) drove for back-to-back layups to get the Bruins on the board. The teams traded baskets and knotted the score at nine with 13:53 on the clock before BU briefly pulled ahead behind layups by sophomore Adrienne Tarrence (Bowling Green, Ky.) and senior Jordan Coleman (Orlando, Fla.). The rivals fell back into their back-and-forth battle until the score was tied again, this time at 17, for upwards of three minutes before the Lady Tigers netted a field goal with 7:18 remaining, breaking the stalemate.
TSU used a 7-0 run to close the half, grabbing its first double-digit lead of the night, 31-21, before Tarrence hustled for a tip-in with 12 ticks remaining to send the teams to the locker rooms separated by eight, 31-23.
It took almost three minutes for either team to score to open the second stanza but Belmont was first to find the bottom of the net behind a jumper by Coleman and a pair at the stripe by Brooks that moved the Bruins to within four, 31-27. Suddenly, the BU exploded from the floor, stringing together an 8-2 run that moved it to within two, 37-35, and stunning the Lady Tiger bench into burning a timeout with just over 12 minutes left in the game.
After the brief break in action, the Lady Tigers rolled for an 8-2 run to pull away by 11, 50-39, with 5:05 on the clock. During the same span, Belmont struggled to emerge from a scoring drought that lasted four and a half minutes. Finally, the Bruins were able to get back into the contest, surging in the final two minutes of regulation, sparked by a converted three point play by Coleman and a heavily contested jumper by sophomore Katie Carroll (Lilburn, Ga.) to close the gap to four, 52-48.
Redshirt sophomore Luffman (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) drained two crucial free throws to make it a two-point game, 52-50, with just over one minute left in the game, bringing the Bruin bench to its feet. Tennessee State answered back with a free throw but BU was not done yet.
After being completely frigid as a team from behind the arc for the entire contest, Carroll drained the team's first of the contest with 39 seconds left, knotting the game at 53. BU sent the Lady Tigers to the line on the next possession but they were only able to convert one of the two with 17 seconds left. Belmont attempted to net the game winner at the buzzer but the jumper rimmed out as TSU was able to hold on for the narrow 54-53 victory.
Tennessee State shot 44.7 percent from the floor and 50 percent both from behind the three-point arc and at the free-throw line.
The Lady Tigers were led in scoring by Simon Hopes, who netted 11, and Kesi Hess, who added 10 points.
Belmont shot 34.6 percent from the hardwood, an icy 12.5 percent from three-point range and 94.1 percent from the charity stripe. The Bruins held the advantage in rebounds, 36-30, assists, 7-6, blocks, 3-1, and steals, 8-5.
Brooks led the Bruins with 12 points, followed by Coleman, who tallied a double-double with 11 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Luffman was perfect at the charity stripe, going 6-for-6, to finish with eight points and pulled down eight boards. Tarrence added eight points. Carroll finished with a game-high three steals, two of which came in the final five minutes of regulation.
Belmont returns to action on Saturday, February 23 as part of its three-game road trip. The Bruins make a stop at Eastern Illinois with tip-off set for 3 p.m. The game can be seen live on the OVC Digital Network. Live stats and a live Twitter feed (@BelmontWBB) will also be available.
