Box Score NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Behind four double-figure scorers and 51 percent shooting the Belmont University women's basketball team defeated visiting Morehead State University 76-51 Thursday evening inside the Curb Event Center. Claiming their fifth consecutive victory, the Bruins used a 22-9 third quarter to pull away from the visiting Eagles and got a near triple double from sophomore guard Tuti Jones.
Improving its Ohio Valley Conference-leading league record to 11-2 and moving to 15-7 overall, Belmont won its 15th straight against Morehead State (1-22, 0-13 OVC).
Jones grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds, collected a career-high tying seven steals, and scored 10 points, while fellow sophomore guard Destinee Wells led all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting. Senior forward Conley Chinn poured in 17 points on 7-for-11 shooting and the Bruins got 12 points and six boards from freshman forward Tessa Miller, who finished 5-of-6 from the floor.
The Bruins owned the glass, outrebounding the Eagles 45-26 and tallying a season-high 19 offensive boards. Belmont scored 48 points in the paint, earned 20 second-chance points and got 20 points off the bench.
Overcoming abnormal 3-for-16 shooting (18.8 percent) from beyond the arc, the Bruins outscored Morehead State 58-33 across the last three quarters.
Belmont's convincing 25-point triumph had a modest beginning as the score was all knotted up at 18 after the first quarter of play. Although the Bruins collected 15 rebounds in the first 10 minutes, Belmont shot just 39 percent in the first quarter. The Eagles had their best shooting performance of the game in the opening quarter, connecting on five of their first 10 three-point attempts.
Trailing by as much as four in the second quarter at 25-21, the Bruins went on a 12-0 run over a 3:36 stretch to build an eight-point lead at 33-25. Belmont outscored Morehead State 18-5 over the final 7:15 of the half and took a 39-30 lead into the break.
Shooting 64.3 percent (9-of-14) in the second quarter, the Bruins outscored the Eagles 21-12. Chinn had 15 points at intermission and Belmont scored nearly 40 points without hitting a three-pointer.
The Eagles were 1-for-5 from distance in the second quarter and went 31.3 percent (5-of-16) from the floor in the period. Morehead State shot 38 percent (11-of-29) in the first half and was 6-for-15 (40 percent) from deep.
The Bruins began the second half on an 11-4 run as Wells scored Belmont's first nine points. A layup from Miller four-and-a-half minutes into the half gave the Bruins a 16-point lead at 50-34. Extending its fast second-half start to 16-4, Belmont built a 21-point advantage at 55-34 on a Jones trey with 3:41 to go in the third quarter.
Miller's layup with just over a minute left in the third gave the Bruins a 24-point lead at 61-37 and Belmont led 61-39 heading into the final quarter of play. Outpacing the Eagles by 13 in the third quarter, the Bruins held Morehead State to 31 percent (4-of-13) shooting.
Belmont outscored the Eagles 14-5 across the first eight minutes of the fourth quarter after a layup by junior guard Nikki Baird put the Bruins up 70-44 with just under five minutes left. A driving layup from freshman guard Kilyn McGuff capped a 7-0 spurt and gave Belmont its largest lead of the evening at 31 with just under three minutes remaining.
Morehead State closed the contest on a 7-1 run.
The Bruins once again held the Eagles to 31 percent (4-of-13) shooting in the fourth quarter while going 6-for-11 (54.5 percent) from the field. Belmont shot 51.7 percent (15-of-29) in the second half and finished 31-for-61 (50.8 percent) for the game. Morehead State was limited to 34.5 percent (19-of-55) shooting for the 40 minutes but went 10-for-27 (37 percent) from long range.
Starting forward Julan McDonald led the Eagles with 19 points on 8-of-16 shooting and dished out a game-high tying four assists.
Up Next
The Bruins head to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, Saturday for a 2 p.m. tipoff at Southeast Missouri. The OVC road affair inside the Show Me Center will be broadcast on ESPN+. Next week, Belmont hosts Eastern Illinois and SIUE.
Follow Belmont women's basketball on social media - @BelmontWBB on Twitter, @belmontwbb on Instagram and Belmont Women's Basketball on Facebook - for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
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