Box Score COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Trailing Tennessee Tech by seven at 48-41 with 6:40 to go on the road, the Belmont University women's basketball team was undeterred. The Bruins closed on a 17-1 run to pick up a crucial 58-49 Ohio Valley Conference victory inside the Hooper Eblen Center, collecting their third consecutive win in the process.
Propelled by sophomore guard Destinee Wells' season-high 27 points, Belmont outscored the host Golden Eagles 22-5 in the fourth quarter after trailing by as much as eight with nine minutes left.
Retaking the lead in the 10-team OVC by half a game, the Bruins improved to 9-2 in conference play and 13-7 overall with Saturday's triumph.
Tennessee Tech (14-8, 9-3 OVC) led for 20 minutes of the contest and held a 38-28 advantage on the boards but went 1-for-8 at the free-throw line in the final quarter. For the second-straight outing Belmont was nearly perfect in the fourth quarter, going 8-for-10 from the field after shooting just 27.3 percent (3-for-11) in the third.
Despite going 4-for-14 (28.6 percent) in the opening quarter, the Bruins shot 53.8 percent (7-of-13) in the second quarter before scoring 33 second-half points behind 52.4 percent shooting.
Giving up 15 offensive rebounds and 11 second-chance points, Belmont outscored the Golden Eagles 30-22 in the paint.
Wells scored the Bruins' first seven points and Belmont took a 9-7 lead on a layup from senior forward Conley Chinn just over five minutes in. However, the Bruins were held scoreless for the remainder of the first quarter as Tennessee Tech led 13-9 following the first 10 minutes of action.
Layups from sophomore forward Madison Bartley got Belmont within a point twice before Wells nailed a pull-up jumper to cap an 8-0 Bruin run. With three consecutive baskets to close the run, Wells gave Belmont a 22-17 lead with four minutes to go in the half. After the Golden Eagles knotted things at 24, a Bartley free throw put the Bruins ahead 25-24 right before the break.
Belmont outscored Tennessee Tech 16-11 in the second quarter and limited the Golden Eagles to only two made field goals on 22.2 percent (2-of-9) shooting.
After Wells began the second half with yet another bucket, Tennessee Tech went on an 11-2 run over the ensuing 3:12 to build a 35-29 advantage. Sophomore guard Tuti Jones drained a three-pointer to get the Bruins within two with just under three minutes remaining in the third quarter, but the Golden Eagles ended the period on a 7-1 run.
Tennessee Tech outpaced Belmont 20-11 in the third quarter behind 43.8 percent (7-of-16) shooting, going 2-for-4 from beyond the arc and 4-for-4 at the foul line to take a 44-36 lead into the final 10 minutes.
A layup by Golden Eagle starting forward Mackenzie Coleman put the home team up 46-38 with 9:07 to go before the Bruins embarked on their comeback journey. Belmont outscored Tennessee Tech 20-3 over the last nine minutes of on-court action, getting 10 points from Wells.
Wells ignited the Bruins' 17-1 ending stretch with six-straight points to get Belmont back within one with four minutes remaining. A driving layup by Jones gave the Bruins their first lead since early in the third quarter at 49-48 with 3:13 left, and layups by senior guard Jamilyn Kinney and Bartley made it a five-point game at 53-48 with two minutes to go. Jones and Bartley combined for a trio of free throws in the final 35 seconds to seal the deal.
Belmont held the Golden Eagles to 15.4 percent (2-of-13) shooting in the fourth quarter while going 5-of-8 at the free-throw line.
Across the full 40 minutes, the Bruins shot 45.8 percent (22-of-48) and overcame 5-for-20 shooting from distance. Tennessee Tech, who entered the weekend as one of the top shooting teams in the country, connected on just 32.7 percent (17-of-52) of its field goal attempts and was 3-for-11 (27.3 percent) from long range.
Wells was 12-of-23 from the floor for the evening and distributed a game-high five assists. Bartley finished with 12 points on 4-for-5 shooting, pulled down a team-high six rebounds and made six blocks, while Jones scored 11 and recorded a pair of steals.
The Golden Eagles got a near double-double of 10 points and game-high nine rebounds from starting guard Jada Guinn. Tennessee Tech's Anna Jones contributed 12 points, six boards and four assists.
Belmont earned its seventh road win of the season, improving to 5-1 away from home in league play.
Up Next
The Bruins wrap up their three-game road trip Monday at defending OVC regular season champion the University of Tennessee at Martin. Tipoff from inside the Elam Center in Martin, Tennessee, is slated for 6 p.m. The conference road affair will be broadcast on ESPN+.
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.
#ItsBruinTime
