Box Score COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- Comeback was the name of the game for the Belmont women's basketball team's final road game of the regular season on Saturday evening. The Bruins (12-15, 9-5 OVC) battled to the wire to defeat in-state rival Tennessee Tech (5-22, 2-12 OVC), 64-62, for their fourth-straight OVC win.
The Bruins turned up the heat from the opening whistle and jumped out to a 5-0 lead with baskets coming from senior Katie Carroll (Lilburn, Ga.) and sophomore Lauren Thompson (Franklin, Tenn.). BU's defensive effort kept the Golden Eagles from scoring for the first three and a half minutes. Even after their first points, Tennessee Tech struggled to connect from the floor as BU blew its lead up to double digits, 15-5, by the 13:44 mark.
Belmont grabbed its biggest lead of the game, 13 points, 22-9, before TTU used a quick flurry to finally break the double digit mark with 10 minutes left on the clock. The Bruins continued to hustle and maintained their advantage, using another three by Carroll to put Belmont back up by eight, 28-20, with 4:45 remaining. BU controlled the tempo in the waning minutes and did not allow Tennessee Tech to get closer than seven as Thompson, and freshman Sierra Jones (Huntsville, Ala.) pushed for layups. A stringent defensive effort kept TTU from scoring for the final 54 seconds as Belmont carried a 32-25 lead into the locker room.
Tennessee Tech came out of the break firing on all cylinders and used an 8-0 run to grab its first lead of the game, 33-32, by the 18:10 mark. Spotty shooting continued to plague the Bruins early in the half but freshman Sally McCabe (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) did great work in the paint for consecutive tip-ins to keep BU in the game. Belmont found an offensive rhythm and used a trifecta by senior Jordyn Luffman-Hartsfield (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) to cut the deficit to one point, 46-45, with 10:55 remaining on the clock. Tennessee Tech's largest lead of the day, six points, was quickly whittled away, thanks to a pair of three pointers by Luffman-Hartsfield and a McCabe jumper. At the end of the surge, BU had knotted the score at 50 with 8:07 left on the clock.
TTU traded baskets with Belmont before using a three pointer and a three point play to inch to within one, 59-58, with 3:10 left in regulation. The Golden Eagles briefly regained the lead behind back-to-back baskets in the paint, 62-59, with just over two and a half minutes left. Belmont then turned up the defensive heat to hustle for crucial stops. A triple by Carroll knotted the game at 62 with 70 seconds left in regulation and after a fruitless possession by the Golden Eagles, she was able to find the bottom of the net again from nearly the same spot, this time just inside the arc to put Belmont ahead, 64-62.
TTU attempted to hold for the final shot but missed and was forced to foul with eight ticks left on the clock. The shot at the stripe rimmed out and BU leaned on its defense again to maintain the lead as time expired to give it the win by the same score.
Tennessee Tech shot 40 percent from the floor, 55.6 percent from three-point range and 81.8 percent from the free-throw line. The Golden Eagles held the advantage in blocks, 2-0, and steals, 6-2.
TTU was led in scoring by Samaria Howard, who scored a game-high 21 points. T'Keyah Williams and Shunice Herron also reached double digits, adding 11 and 10 points, respectively. Candace Parson grabbed 10 rebounds.
Belmont shot 44.6 percent from the hardwood, 34.8 percent from behind the three-point arc and 50 percent from the charity stripe. The Bruins held the advantage in rebounds, 41-30, and assists, 20-10.
Three Bruins reached double figures in the win led by senior Jordyn Luffman-Hartsfield (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.), who netted 19 points, including five three pointers, which matched her career-best. Freshman Sally McCabe (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) dropped in 12 points and senior Katie Carroll (Lilburn, Ga.) added 11 points, including nine from behind the three-point arc. Sophomore Frankie Joubran (Detroit, Mich.) led the Bruins in rebounds with a total of seven. Senior Adrienne Tarrence (Bowling Green, Ky.) matched her career high of nine assists.
Belmont returns to action on Wednesday, February 25 in the Curb Event Center. The Bruins host Eastern Kentucky beginning at 6 p.m. The contest can be seen live on the OVC Digital Network and heard live via the internet on the Bruins Sports Network. Live stats and in-game Twitter feed (@BelmontWBB) will also be available.
