Destinee Wells Garners MVC Player of the Week Award

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Following the first week of the 2022-23 season, the Belmont University women's basketball team has a Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week. Junior guard Destinee Wells has been named MVC Player of the Week as announced by the league office Monday afternoon.
 
Her first weekly accolade from the Bruins' new conference, Wells was twice named Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Week last season after earning four OVC Freshman of the Week honors during Belmont's 2020-21 campaign.
 
Wells was nothing shy of extraordinary in the first two games of the season, scoring 20 points in both the Bruins' gritty come-from-behind 56-54 opening night victory over the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Belmont's narrow 75-70 home loss to seventh-ranked Louisville Sunday. Scoring 26 of her 40 points on the week in the fourth quarter, Wells averaged 4.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and a steal in the two games.
 
The Lakeland, Tennessee (Houston HS), native led the Bruins back from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit against the visiting Mocs Wednesday night. Wells' old-fashioned three-point play ignited a 13-2 Belmont run that got the Bruins back in the game. She then clinched the season opening win by hitting a pair of clutch free throws with 24.4 seconds remaining, giving Belmont its first lead of the contest and completing the comeback. Wells also pulled down a career-high tying seven rebounds versus Chattanooga and was 7-for-7 at the free-throw line.
 
On Sunday against the top-10 ranked Cardinals, Wells was once again magnificent in the fourth quarter where she scored 13 of her team-high 20 points. Going 7-for-10 from the field and distributing a game-high four assists, Wells put the Bruins up by four with six-and-a-half minutes to go by sinking her lone three-pointer. Later, Wells gave Belmont its final lead of the game at 68-67 and provided the Bruins a chance in the final minute with a layup that made it a one-point affair. She went 12-for-13 at the foul line in the two games.
 
With her 20 points Sunday against Louisville, Wells became Belmont's 33rd 1,000-point scorer. In only 58 career games, Wells has scored 1,004 points.
 
Wells, the MVC Preseason Player of the Year, is an early candidate for the 2023 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy, Nancy Lieberman Award and Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award.
 
Up Next
The Bruins get their first road test of the season Wednesday evening at Middle Tennessee before continuing their strenuous five-game stretch away from home at fourth-ranked Iowa Sunday. Tipoff from the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro Wednesday is set for 6 p.m. The non-conference road game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
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