NASHVILLE, Tenn. - - Belmont University men's basketball returns to game action Tuesday night at VCU.
The Bruins dropped a 79-71 decision to Wright State Dec. 11. Senior Spencer Turner (Bloomington, Ind.) scored a career-high 23 points as the Bruins played without guards Craig Bradshaw (Ridgetop, Tenn.) and Taylor Barnette (Lexington, Ky.).
Belmont and VCU have been two of the most consistent college basketball programs over the last decade, each ranking among the top 10 nationally in conference record and road/neutral victories.
In fact, Belmont and VCU are two of the six NCAA Division I programs to win 26 or more games each of the last four seasons, along with Duke, Florida, Syracuse and Wichita State.
Belmont and VCU have several connections, among them: VCU track and field head coach Jon Riley previously served as an assistant track & field coach at Belmont...VCU assistant men's tennis coach Houston Barrick is the son of Belmont Associate Athletic Director Steve Barrick...VCU assistant athletic communications director Kristen Litchfield previously served as a media relations graduate assistant at Belmont...Belmont assistant men's soccer coach Travis Morris previously served as a graduate assistant coach at VCU.
Former Belmont All-American and current Utah Jazz guard Ian Clark delivered one of the greatest shooting performances in program history at VCU two seasons ago, going 10-for-10 from the field for 24 points.
Belmont head coach Rick Byrd and VCU head coach Shaka Smart have each been named National Coach of the Year.
This marks the third meeting between Belmont and VCU, and third consecutive season the two programs have met. VCU won the two previous meetings, 75-65 Dec. 2012 in Richmond and 81-68 Dec. 2013 in Nashville.
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT.
The game will be broadcast live on the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network and MyTV30 Nashville.
The live play-by-play of Voice of the Bruins Kevin Ingram can be heard on the Bruin Sports Network. In-game updates will be available on Twitter @BelmontMBB.
Game Notes - Belmont at VCU
