NASHVILLE, Tenn. - - Belmont University men's basketball returns to game action Thursday vs. UT Martin.
Belmont defeated Austin Peay, 82-77, Dec. 31. Senior Taylor Barnette (Lexington, Ky.) scored a career-high 28 points for the Bruins en route to OVC Player of the Week honors.
Belmont and UT Martin were well-represented on last year's All-OVC First Team, with senior Evan Bradds (Jamestown, Ohio), Craig Bradshaw and Twymond Howard honored.
Bradds is averaging 19.3 points per game in three career meetings with UT Martin, including 18 points last season.
Belmont and UT Martin were two of six OVC men's basketball programs to reach postseason last season.
Junior Amanze Egekeze (Lake in the Hills, Ill.) scored a career-high 20 points in last season's 82-72 victory at UT Martin. Egekeze was 6-for-10 from 3-point distance.
Former UT Martin head coach Jason Jones currently serves as head coach at Germantown High School in Memphis, the alma mater of former Belmont All-American and current Golden State Warrior guard Ian Clark ('13). Germantown recently had Clark's No. 21 jersey retired.
This marks the 37th meeting between Belmont and UT Martin, but just the fifth since Belmont became an NCAA Division I member institution in 1996-97; all coming in OVC play.
Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. CT from the Curb Event Center. The game will be broadcast on OVC Digital Network. 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 via Twitter @BelmontMBB.
UT Martin at Belmont Game Notes
