Box Score COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - - Belmont University men's basketball endured an uncharacteristic shooting night in falling at Tennessee Tech, 83-70, Saturday night.
Belmont women's basketball standouts Darby Maggard and Kylee Smith combined on 14 made 3-pointers in the game prior, so the Bruins were hoping to continue their hot-shooting ways.
It just didn't carry over.
Despite early triples from junior Austin Luke (Rowlett, Texas) and senior Nick Smith (Bentonville, Ark.), Belmont missed nine clean 3-point looks in the opening 10 minutes, portending things to come.
Moreover, two fouls on junior Amanze Egekeze (Lake in the Hills, Ill.) in the first 5:46 of the game impacted Belmont's offensive rhythm and defensive coverages.
As Belmont looked to find the range, Tennessee Tech got a deep baseline three from Curtis Phillips and a banked three variety from Stephaun Adams to take a 23-17 lead with 8:32 left in the half.
A Luke basket and a sweet baseline pass from Luke to senior Taylor Barnette (Lexington, Ky.) gave Belmont a 24-23 lead.
The lead seesawed back and forth the rest of the half. with Tennessee Tech leading 34-32 at halftime.
Belmont shot 44 percent (14-for-32) from the field in the opening 20 minutes - including 4-for-19 from 3-point distance. The Bruins had 12 assists on 14 made field goals.
Smith led Belmont with 10 first half points.
Egekeze made a baseline 3-pointer to give the Bruins a 38-36 lead with 18:02 left, but moments later would be forced to the sidelines with his third personal foul.
Consecutive 3-pointers from Smith and Luke pushed Belmont to a 44-41 advantage with 14:49 to go.
While Belmont would earn its way into the bonus seven minutes into the second frame, the Bruins would endure a stretch of one made field goal over nearly 10 minutes midway through the second half.
Four straight Egekeze points made the score 48-47 with 11:06 left, before Aleksa Jugovic answered with a 3-pointer.
Kajon Mack added five straight points to increase the Tennessee Tech lead to 55-48 with 9:51 remaining.
Following two free throws from senior Evan Bradds (Jamestown, Ohio), consecutive 3-pointers from Adams and Jugovic made the score 61-50 with 8:39 left.
Belmont continued to worked for high percentage shots through Bradds, but shots strangely rimmed off.
The teams exchanged free throws before a conventional 3-point play from sophomore Dylan Windler (Indianapolis, Ind.) got Belmont within 70-61 with 4:10 remaining.
Tennessee Tech went 11-for-14 from the free throw line in the final 3:08.
All told, Belmont shot 38 percent (23-for-61) from the field - including 7-for-36 from 3-point distance.
Bradds led five Bruins in double figures with 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Smith scored 13, while Windler, Barnette, and Luke each had 10.
Mack led Tennessee Tech (11-17, 7-6 OVC) with 24 points.
Belmont (18-5, 12-1 OVC) returns to game action Thursday, Feb. 16 vs. Eastern Kentucky. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. 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 and 104.5 The Zone. In-game updates will be available via Twitter @BelmontMBB.
NOTES: The result snapped Belmont's 14-game win streak and its NCAA-best 10-game road win streak ... It marked the first time Belmont shot under 40 percent from field since Dec. 6 ... It marked the first time an opponent shot 50 percent from the field since Jan. 7 ... Belmont outrebounded Tennessee Tech by three, 35-32 ... Bradds was held under 20 points for the first time since Jan. 5 ... Bradds and Luke combined on 14 rebounds and 12 assists ... Belmont entered the night shooting 40 percent from 3 in OVC play on nearly 11 made 3-point field goals per game.
