Middle Tennessee Outpaces Belmont Wednesday Night in Murfreesboro

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – After committing 17 first-half turnovers and making only three baskets in the opening quarter, the Belmont University women's basketball team was unable to recover against a talented Middle Tennessee squad Wednesday evening in the Bruins' first road test of the season. The host Lady Raiders (2-1) raced out to a commanding 22-7 lead after the first quarter of play and never looked back on their way to an 80-62 triumph inside the Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Conference USA preseason favorite Middle Tennessee led by as much as 22 in the second half and Belmont (1-2) trailed by double figures for the majority of the contest. The Bruins' lone lead of the game came in the opening minute on a three by junior guard Tuti Jones.

The Lady Raiders scored 21 points off 20 Belmont turnovers and owned a 41-29 advantage on the boards including dominating the offensive glass, 17-4. Middle Tennessee scored 46 of its 80 points in the paint and got 14 second-chance points.

Seemingly coming up with key shots every time the momentum turned in the Bruins' favor, the Lady Raiders used an 8-0 run to go up 8-3 midway through the first quarter. Extending its run to 22-2, Middle Tennessee led 22-5 with just under two minutes remaining in the opening quarter.

Another Jones three got Belmont within 12 early in the second quarter but the Bruins wouldn't get any closer for the remainder of the evening. Graduate guard Sydni Harvey sunk a three with just over a minute to go before the half, making it a 13-point game at 33-20 at the break.

Belmont was limited to 36.8 percent (7-of-19) shooting in the first half and went 3-for-11 (27.3 percent) from beyond the arc. Despite hitting just one of their 11 three-point attempts, the Lady Raiders shot 38.9 percent (14-of-36) from the field in the first 20 minutes of action while scoring 16 points off the Bruins' uncharacteristic offensive mistakes. Middle Tennessee had nine second-chance points off 12 offensive rebounds at the half.

Scoring 42 points in the second half Belmont looked poised to make a run to begin the third quarter, but consecutive Lady Raider layups made it a 16-point affair. The hosts mounted a 22-point advantage at 45-23 after outscoring the Bruins 12-3 to begin the second half.

A Harvey layup on a backdoor cut and a Destinee Wells trey got Belmont within 17 midway through the third quarter, before reserve sophomore forward Kendal Cheesman connected on a trio of triples. Cheesman's back-to-back three-pointers in the closing seconds of the third made it a 16-point contest at 57-41, however, Middle Tennessee's Courtney Blakely hit a three at the third quarter buzzer.

Cheesman scored the first five points of the fourth quarter, knocking down her fourth three-pointer and scoring on a layup to get the Bruins within 14 at 60-46 with just under nine minutes to go.

From there, the Lady Raiders strung together a 10-2 run to take a 70-48 lead with five minutes remaining.

Belmont made one final push with six free throws, a Jones triple and a layup from junior forward Madison Bartley that got the Bruins within 13 at 72-59 with just over two minutes left. Middle Tennessee ended the game on an 8-3 run across the final two minutes.

Both teams shot much better in the second half with the Lady Raiders going 14-for-29 (48.3 percent) from the field and Belmont shooting 45.8 percent (11-of-24). Middle Tennessee was 15-of-18 (83.3 percent) at the free-throw line in the second half and the Bruins 14-of-19 (73.7 percent).

Belmont went 9-for-25 (36 percent) from long range for the game and hit 17 of its 23 free-throw attempts (73.9 percent), while the Blue Raiders made 19 of their 27 foul shots (70.4 percent). Both squads shot a little better than 40 percent overall from the floor with the Bruins going 18-for-43 (41.9 percent) and Middle Tennessee shooting 43.1 percent (28-of-65).

In only 12 minutes of action, Cheesman led all Belmont players with a career-high 14 points on 4-for-6 three-point shooting. Jones scored 13 on 3-for-6 shooting from outside, while Bartley finished with 12 points. Wells distributed a game-high five assists.
 
Starting forward Kseniya Malashka paced four Lady Raiders in double figures with a game-best 23 points and nine rebounds. Middle Tennessee's Savannah Wheeler scored 22 as Jalynn Gregory provided 12 points and eight boards. The Lady Raiders got 10 points and seven rebounds from Courtney Whitson.

Of Note
All 12 Bruins saw the court as freshman forward Caroline Bachus made her collegiate debut. Junior guard Destinee Wells finished with five points, only her sixth career game not reaching double figures and her second-lowest point total of her collegiate career. She had scored in double figures in 12-straight games and 45 of her previous 47 outings. Middle Tennessee improved to 19-14 all-time versus Belmont. The loss is head coach Bart Brooks' first to the Lady Raiders, he is 3-1 versus Middle Tennessee.
 
Up Next
The Bruins continue their strenuous five-game road stretch at fourth-ranked Iowa Sunday afternoon. Tipoff from Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa, is slated for 2 p.m. The marquee non-conference matchup will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network+.
 
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