Box Score EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Belmont women's basketball logged its 1,000th win in program history with a 78-33 road rout of SIU Edwardsville Saturday afternoon at First Community Arena.
The Bruins recorded season high marks in field goal percentage (.544), points in the paint (44) and fast break points (21) in their fourth consecutive win. Belmont (10-4, 7-2 OVC) also dished out 22 assists, forced 20 turnovers and grabbed 45 rebounds.
Four Bruins tallied double-figure points, as sophomore forward Cam Browning led Belmont with her first career double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds in 23 minutes. Freshman guard Whitney Hay posted a team-high 14 points, while fellow first-year guard Tuti Jones racked up 12 points and five steals. Freshman forward Madison Bartley rounded out the team's double-digit scorers with 11 points.
The Cougars (6-12, 3-10 OVC) were fueled by senior guard/forward Allie Troeckler, who registered a team-high nine points. In total, the Bruins held SIU Edwardsville to a 16 percent clip from the floor on 11 made shots.
A jumper from Hay kicked off Belmont's scoring, as it tied up the game at 2-2 through two minutes of play. Junior guard Maddie Cook scored the Bruins' next seven points to put them up 9-5 over SIU Edwardsville at the 3:44 mark. Browning notched a layup in the final minutes of the first quarter to give Belmont a 16-12 advantage through one period.
The Bruins got off to a hot to start in the second quarter, as a three from junior forward Conley Chinn extended their lead to 22-12 at the 3:29 mark. Belmont kept the Cougars from scoring a point until the three-minute mark, while Jones quickly answered to keep the Bruins up 10 points. Hay knocked down a corner jumpshot to score Belmont's final points of the first half and take a 26-16 lead after two quarters.
At halftime, Cook led all Bruins with seven points and five rebounds, while Jones and Hay chipped in four points apiece. Jones also grabbed five first-half steals, as Belmont held SIU Edwardsville to a 19 percent clip from the field and forced 12 turnovers.
The Bruins started the second half with a 9-0 run, when an and-one from Bartley put Belmont ahead 35-16 in the first two minutes. Browning tallied six points over the next three minutes to increase the Bruin advantage to 43-19 by the midway mark of the period. Browning continued to dominate the paint to end the quarter and helped Belmont out to a 50-26 lead going into the final 10 minutes.
A 3-pointer from Hay boosted the Bruins' advantage to 34 points at the 7:15 mark of the fourth quarter. Hay hit another jumper to put Belmont up 67-27 at the halfway point of the last period. Schoenwald then put in back-to-back layups to give the Bruins a 78-32 lead with two minutes remaining. Belmont kept pressure on the Cougars for the remainder of the game, as it went on to record the 78-33 road victory.
Overall, the Bruins led for all but five minutes of the game, as they racked up 36 bench points. Cook dished out a team-best six assists, while Schoenwald tallied a career-high nine points. Browning's double-double marked career highs for her in points, rebounds and field goals made, as she shot a perfect 6-of-6 from the field.
BRUINS HIT 1K: With its victory on Saturday, the Bruins became the 17th program in NCAA history to reach 1,000 wins.
DOUBLING UP: For the first time since joining the OVC in 2012, Belmont has held two conference opponents to 35 points or less in a season. The Bruins previously held Tennessee State to just 35 points on Dec. 10 at the Curb Event Center.
FILLING IT UP: With a 54 percent clip from the field against SIU Edwardsville, Belmont recorded its second game this season with a shooting percentage of 50 percent or higher. It also marked its second victory by 40-plus points this year.
UP NEXT: The Bruins return home for a six-game homestand, beginning with Southeast Missouri on Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 5 p.m.
