Box Score Postgame Press Conference
OVC Championship Central | Tickets | Bracket
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Belmont University women's basketball team is headed to its seventh Ohio Valley Conference Championship title game after defeating Austin Peay State University 63-51 in the semifinals Friday afternoon inside the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana. The top-seeded Bruins used an impressive third quarter of defense to pull away from the fourth-seeded Governors and relied on their experienced composure down the stretch.
On Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. Belmont will vie for its sixth OVC Tournament championship in seven seasons. The Bruins will take on second-seeded Tennessee Tech for the league tournament title after the Golden Eagles defeated third-seeded Murray State 68-62 late Friday afternoon in the second semifinal.
Sophomores Madison Bartley and Destinee Wells each scored 20 points to lead all scorers and Belmont shot 50 percent (23-of-46) from the field across the 40 minutes. A 15-6 third quarter and 18 points off 18 forced turnovers propelled the Bruins (21-7) past a hot-shooting Austin Peay squad.
The Governors (19-11) connected on 51.4 percent (19-of-37) of their shots and went 8-for-11 (72.7 percent) from long range but Belmont outscored Austin Peay 34-18 in the paint. The Bruins owned the glass, outrebounding the Governors 26-19 and scoring 11 points off eight offensive boards.
A 9-0 run put Belmont up 13-6 at the first media timeout and Bartley swished a top-of-the-key three to give the Bruins their first double-digit lead of the afternoon at 18-8 with just over two minutes left in the opening quarter.
Austin Peay ended the first quarter on a 7-2 run, but Belmont led 20-15 after one quarter of play. The Bruins shot 53 percent (9-of-17) in the first quarter and went 2-for-5 from deep as the Governors were kept to 43 percent (6-of-14) shooting.
A 16-6 Austin Peay run over a 6:24 stretch from the 2:11 mark of the first quarter to the midway point of the second quarter knotted up the score at 24. Tied at 29 with just under 90 seconds to go in the half, Belmont got a pair of scores in the paint. An acrobatic basket from senior guard Jamilyn Kinney right before the break gave the Bruins a four-point, 33-29 halftime lead.
The Bruins shot 52 percent (13-of-25) in the first half and both Bartley and Wells had 10 points at intermission. In fact, Bartley reached double-figure scoring in the first 13 minutes of the contest.
The Governors shot 62.5 percent (5-of-8) in the second quarter and were a perfect 5-for-5 from beyond the arc in the first half.
Four-straight buckets by Bartley to begin the second half ballooned Belmont's lead to 11 at 41-30 four minutes into the third quarter. Another Bartley layup gave the Bruins their largest lead of the game at 45-30 with just under two minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Belmont limited Austin Peay to only one field goal attempt in the first eight minutes of the third quarter as the Governors were held to just one point during the stretch. Starting the third quarter on a 12-1 run, the Bruins forced nine turnovers in the period and held Austin Peay to only three field goal attempts.
Eleven of Belmont's 15 points in the third quarter came off turnovers as the Bruins went 6-for-13 from the floor (46.2 percent). Belmont took a commanding 48-35 advantage into the fourth quarter.
The Governors began the final quarter on a 10-4 run over the first four minutes of action, climbing within seven at 52-45. Austin Peay then trimmed the deficit to five at 54-49 with 2:44 to go. However, a much needed wing triple from sophomore guard Tuti Jones increased the Bruins' lead to eight with just under two-and-a-half minutes left.
After the Governors got a layup, Wells drove down the lane and scored to make it 59-51 with less than a minute remaining. Wells and Kinney converted four free throws in the final 40 seconds to seal the win.
Both teams shot 50 percent in the fourth quarter and Belmont went 6-for-6 at the foul line.
Going 8-for-8 at the charity stripe in the second half, the Bruins finished 13-of-16 (81.3 percent) at the free-throw line. Belmont shot 47.6 percent (10-of-21) overall in the closing 20 minutes while Austin Peay went 8-for-15 (53.3 percent) from the field and 3-for-6 from distance.
Senior forward Conley Chinn collected a game-high seven rebounds and Kinney tallied six points.
The Governors had a trio reach double figures led by Shay-Lee Kirby's 11 points. Karle Pace and D'Shara Booker both scored 10 for Austin Peay with Pace distributing a game-high four assists.
Up Next
The Bruins will face Tennessee Tech for the first time in the OVC Championship title game and just the third time in an OVC Tournament. The championship game 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.
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