Box Score NASHVILLE, Tenn.- The Belmont University women's basketball team (17-7, 9-2) cruised to its ninth-consecutive victory as it defeated Jacksonville State 56-42, Wednesday evening at the Curb Event Center. Belmont is now 12-0 at home.
Sally McCabe (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) paced the Bruins in points with 14 and rebounds with 13 as she notched her fourth double double the season. Darby Maggard (Larwill, Ind.) scored 11 points on a trifecta of three pointers and Lauren Thompson (Franklin, Tenn.) rounded out the Bruin double digit point scorers with 10 points.
Belmont's streak of nine straight wins is its longest consecutive victories streak since 2006-07 since it won 10 in a row during its days in the Atlantic Sun. Both streaks occurred conference play.
The Bruins were in the control for the entire game as they never trailed. Belmont held the Gamecocks to just 27.6 percent shooting from the field and 23.1 percent shooting from beyond the arc.
Freshman Jenny Roy (Brentwood, Tenn.) collected eight rebounds for the Bruins.
Jacksonville State would cut the Belmont lead to just five points, early on in the final quarter at 40-35. The Bruins responded with seven-straight points to grow their lead back to 12 with 5:40 remaining. A Maggard pull up transition three pointer gave Belmont a 50-35 lead and forced the Gamecocks to a call a timeout. BU would not take its foot off the gas from this point forward as it never trailed by less than 13 from this point forward to close out the game.
Jacksonville State led an early charge out of the second half gate to trim the BU lead to eight at 32-24 at the 4:54 mark of the third quarter. After Belmont stretched its lead back to double digits, the Gamecocks finished the quarter hitting their final three shots and narrowed the deficit to just 40-33. Belmont looked to McCabe early and often in the third frame, and the 6'3 sophomore cashed in with seven points on 3-of-5 shooting.
Belmont held the Gamecocks to just six first quarter points, the fewest points given up in a quarter since the Bruins limited Alabama A&M to just two in the fourth quarter on Nov. 24. At the first quarter media timeout, Belmont led JSU 10-2. In the Jan. 20 matchup at Jacksonville, BU scored five points in all of the first quarter. Maggard found her rhythm from beyond the arc early, as she knocked down a pair of triples to help BU jump out to an early advantage.
At the half, Belmont held a 27-15 advantage over the visiting Gamecocks. The Bruins' 15 points allowed were the fewest they have conceded in a half all season and they held Jacksonville State to just 21 percent shooting from the field. All eight Bruins to see action in the first half scored, Maggard and Smith paced the BU offense with six points apiece.
The Bruins return to action Saturday, Feb. 13 when they travel to Morehead State for a 1:30 p.m. CT tip. BU has just one home contest remaining on the 2015-16 docket, as it hosts Tennessee Tech on Feb. 20.
