Bruins Close Hoosier State Stay at Evansville Sunday Afternoon

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – On its first three-game winning streak in Missouri Valley Conference play, the Belmont University women's basketball team returns to game action Sunday afternoon at the University of Evansville. Tipoff from Meeks Family Fieldhouse in Evansville, Indiana, is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
The conference road contest will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Matt Pauley (play-by-play) and Preston Leinenbach (analyst) serving as talent. Dr. Rich Tiner will have the call of the action live on Belmont All-Access via BelmontBruins.com. Live in-game statistics will also be available at BelmontBruins.com.
 
What's Bruin

• Picking up their second MVC road victory, the Bruins (10-10, 6-3 MVC) defeated Indiana State 65-51 Friday evening at the Hulman Center in Terre Haute, Indiana.
• After starting 3-7, Belmont has gone 7-3 in its last 10 games with two three-game win streaks.
• The Bruins have held each of their last three opponents to 35 percent shooting or lower.
• Junior forward Madison Bartley, who has scored at least 22 points in her last three outings, is averaging 24 points on 56 percent shooting and 6.7 rebounds over the last three games.
• Last Sunday afternoon, Belmont routed visiting Southern Illinois 101-45 at the Curb Event Center. The 56-point win was the Bruins' first 50-point victory since January of last year when Belmont trounced Morehead State 103-50 on the road. It was the second-largest margin of victory for the Bruins under head coach Bart Brooks – Belmont defeated Division II Trevecca Nazarene by 58 (97-39) on Nov. 28, 2017.
• Friday's road test was the Bruins' first game Since Jan. 1 against an opponent who didn't earn a national postseason berth last season.
• Thirteen of Belmont's first 19 opponents won no fewer than 19 games a year ago and reached a national postseason tournament.
• Since 2012-13, the Bruins have compiled a remarkable 146-32 (.820) record in league play and won 11 combined championships, including regular season and tournament titles.
• Coach Brooks is an astounding 86-12 (.878) in conference action over his six seasons guiding Belmont.
• Last Sunday's win over the Salukis was coach Brooks' 60th triumph at Curb. He is 60-11 (.845) at home since taking over the reins of the program in April of 2017.
• Paced by near double-doubles from Bartley and junior guard Destinee Wells, the Bruins controlled Friday's affair with an all-around performance. Belmont had strong play on both ends of the court, made timely three-pointers and held a plus-nine advantage on the glass (43-34). Taking control of the game early, the Bruins led for 37 minutes of play and mounted a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter. Scoring 32 points in the paint, Belmont assisted on 15 of its 24 baskets. The Bruins used a 19-12 third quarter and a lengthy 14-4 scoring run during a near seven-minute stretch spanning from the third to the fourth quarter to secure the triumph. Limiting the Sycamores to 35 percent shooting, Belmont shot 40.7 percent and went 9-for-12 at the free-throw line. Going 10-for-20 from the floor, Bartley scored a game-high 24 points and grabbed a game-best tying eight rebounds. Wells finished with 15 points and dished out a game-high eight assists. Sophomore guard Kilyn McGuff nearly reached double figures with nine points and five boards.
• After averaging 24 points and six rebounds in 23.7 minutes across two Bruin wins last weekend, Bartley was named both MVC and Tennessee Sports Writers Association (TSWA) Player of the Week. She shot 60 percent (18-of-30) from the field and went 11-for-12 (.917) at the free-throw line in the two games. In Belmont's 75-66 win over Missouri State last Friday night, Bartley scored 14 of her season-high 26 points in the fourth quarter. Going 8-for-8 at the foul line and grabbing a team-high eight boards, Bartley scored eight-straight points in the closing minutes to seal the victory. Last Sunday, Bartley was ultra-efficient against Southern Illinois. In only 15:49 on the court, Bartley scored 22 points on 9-for-10 shooting and secured four rebounds.
• On Wednesday, Jan. 18, Wells was named to the midseason watch list for the 2023 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award presented by Her Hoop Stats. One of only 15 players nationally in contention for the player of the year award, Wells has reached double-figure scoring in all but four games. Through 20 games, Wells is averaging 16.3 points, 4.8 assists and 3.3 rebounds per contest. She ranks third in the MVC in scoring and second in assists as the only player in the league averaging over 16 points and four assists.
• Despite their 10-10 record, the Bruins are ranked in the top 100 of the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings at No. 93 as the fourth-highest ranked MVC team. Evansville enters Sunday with the fifth-lowest NET ranking in the 12-team conference, sitting at 202nd.
• Belmont's non-conference strength of schedule is ranked as the 17th-most difficult in the nation. Furthermore, the Bruins' average opponent NET ranking (No. 115) is tied for 43rd-highest in the country.
• Belmont has faced a trio of teams ranked in the top 25 of the NET – No. 9 Iowa (Nov. 20), No. 16 Villanova (Nov. 25) and No. 22 Middle Tennessee (Nov. 16). In fact, the Bruins have taken on nine teams ranked in the top 85 of the NET, including No. 35 Louisville (Nov. 13), No. 49 Georgia (Dec. 17), No. 50 Drake (Jan. 6), No. 63 Northern Iowa (Jan. 8), No. 73 Georgia Tech (Nov. 27 and Dec. 4) and No. 84 Illinois State (Jan. 15).
• Seven of Belmont's 10 non-conference opponents this season won over 20 games last year and earned a national postseason tournament bid.
• A total of 13 opponents on the Bruins' schedule reached a national postseason tournament last March, including seven who made the NCAA Tournament, and 12 won at least 20 games last season.
• With a challenging four-game stretch from Nov. 13-25, Belmont has taken on three nationally-ranked teams. Louisville was ranked seventh in the nation when the Cardinals visited Nashville on Nov. 13 and the Bruins traveled to now receiving-votes Middle Tennessee just three days later before heading to fourth-ranked Iowa on Nov. 20. On Friday, Nov. 25 in Estero, Florida, at the Gulf Coast Showcase, Belmont battled then 23rd-ranked Villanova in a high-scoring 83-80 setback.
• Sunday will be only the third all-time meeting between the Bruins and Purple Aces with Evansville winning both of the previous two meetings. The two teams played each other twice during Belmont's infancy as a Division I program.
• The Purple Aces won the first matchup in the series 77-68 in Nashville on Dec. 6, 1997, before Evansville defeated the Bruins 92-59 in Indiana the following season on Nov. 22, 1998.
• Recording her second career double-double on Jan. 1 in the 72-59 home win over the University of Illinois Chicago with 18 points and 10 rebounds, both of Bartley's double-doubles have been achieved on New Year's Day. She began 2022 with 21 points and 14 rebounds in a road victory at Eastern Illinois.
• Graduate guard Sydni Harvey garnered MVC Player and Newcomer of the Week accolades following Christmas weekend for her sensational shooting display and 33-point outing in Belmont's thrilling 98-87 overtime victory over Troy on Dec. 20. She recorded the first 30-point game by a Bruin since March 6, 2021, when Wells scored 32 in the 2021 OVC Tournament championship game versus UT Martin. Harvey's program record 10 three-pointers were the second-most ever by a MVC player in a game and she became the first NCAA Division I women's basketball player to hit 10 threes in a contest this season. Her 10th trey 78 seconds into overtime put Belmont up 87-82 as she tied the Curb record for made triples in a game. Harvey also became the first Valley player to make 10 threes in a contest since Drake's Kyndal Clark did so versus Loyola Chicago on Jan. 24, 2014. Prior to Harvey's 10-for-12 shooting from outside, the last Division I women's player to make 10 three-pointers on 12 or fewer attempts was Marshall's Taylor Porter, who also went 10-for-12 from deep on March 7, 2019, against Florida International University. The Nashville, Tennessee (Brentwood Academy), native went 3-for-4 at the free-throw line and added a pair of rebounds in the home win over the Trojans. Harvey's 41.0 three-point percentage and 43 made treys on the season are both among MVC leaders.
• With 21 boards against Troy, sophomore forward Tessa Miller registered the Bruins' first 20-rebound performance since Ellie Harmeyer notched 20 versus the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Nov. 6, 2019. Her 21 rebounds were just three off the single-game program record of 24.
• Along with 24 points and a season-high nine assists, Wells added a trio of rebounds and a pair of steals in Belmont's non-conference finale win over the Trojans. She became the first MVC player since 2016 to total 24 points, nine assists and two steals in a game. The Lakeland, Tennessee (Houston HS), native also became the first MVC player since 2012 to tally 24 points, nine assists and two steals while making two or more three-pointers (2-of-5). Wells' 24-point, nine-assist, two-steal performance was only the ninth in the nation this season – three of the first eight such outings were accomplished by Iowa's Caitlin Clark, the reigning Big Ten Conference Player of the Year. With her 25-point output against UIC, Wells became the third Bruin since 2009-10 to score 25-plus points in 10 or more career games, joining Kylee Smith (12) and Ellie Harmeyer (11).
• Four different Belmont players have posted multiple 20-point performances this season with Wells leading the way (8), followed by Bartley (5), and Harvey and McGuff with two 20-point games apiece.
• Wells has been held under double figures in consecutive games just once in her impressive career, finishing with nine points at then No. 4 Iowa on Nov. 20 after scoring five at now receiving-votes Middle Tennessee on Nov. 16.
• Following the first week of the season, Wells was tabbed MVC Player of the Week after a pair of 20-point home showings against Chattanooga and top-10 ranked Louisville. Wells scored 26 of her 40 points on the week in the fourth quarter, grabbed a career-high tying seven rebounds against the Mocs, and put the Bruins in front of the nationally-ranked Cardinals with only 2:17 remaining. The star guard became Belmont's 33rd 1,000-point scorer in the tightly-contested matchup with seventh-ranked Louisville and was named to the 2022-23 John R. Wooden Award^® presented by Wendy's^® Preseason Top 50 Watch List after the opening week of the season. One of only four mid-major players to appear on the prestigious watch list, Wells has scored 1,290 points and registered 351 assists in only 76 career games. She has reached double-figure scoring in all but six of her last 65 games and 67 total career outings. Wells owns 28 20-point games and was tabbed MVC Preseason Player of the Year in the Bruins' first year in the league.
• Between Harvey, who scored 1,142 points at South Florida and has accounted for 1,336 career points, and Wells, Belmont has two career 1,000-point scorers.
• The Bruins received seven votes in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25 and eight votes in the USA Today Sports/Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Coaches Poll following week one of the regular season. Belmont received 14 votes in the preseason AP Top 25 and nine votes in the preseason USA Today Sports/WBCA Coaches Poll.
• One of the premier mid-major programs in the country, the Bruins began the season ranked No. 6 in the nation in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25^®.
• Entering its first season in the MVC, Belmont was picked to win the conference after a vote of the league's head coaches, sports information directors and media members. The Bruins received 32 of 44 possible first-place votes in the preseason predicted order of finish.
• Ranked 25th in Sports Illustrated's 2022-23 basketball preview edition, Belmont has either been ranked or received votes in at least one of the two major national polls for eight-straight seasons.
• The Bruins are the only non-power conference program to reach the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 each of the last two seasons.
• Belmont has earned a national postseason bid nine of the last 10 years and reached each of the last six NCAA Tournaments.
• The Bruins are one of just 12 programs in the nation and one of only three non-power conference teams (Florida Gulf Coast and South Dakota State) to win 20 or more games for seven-straight seasons.
• Belmont owns the 17th-most victories in NCAA Division I women's basketball history (1,044).
• Belmont is the only school in the nation to win 20 or more games for seven consecutive seasons in both men's and women's basketball.
• In 2021-22, Belmont and BYU were the only two schools in the country who received votes in top-25 coaches polls in men's and women's basketball and baseball during their respective regular seasons.
• In his sixth season at the helm, coach Brooks has guided the Bruins to an impressive 133-44 (.751) record and eight combined conference championships, including regular season and tournament titles.

About the Purple Aces

• Led by second-year head coach Robyn Scherr-Wells, the Purple Aces are 9-8 on the season and 4-5 in MVC play.
• Splitting its last four games, Evansville has won four of its last seven after starting league action 0-2. The Purple Aces are coming off a 75-67 home win over Murray State Friday evening where they set the program's single-game attendance record (893) at Meeks Family Fieldhouse.
• Last weekend, Evansville suffered a 78-46 loss at Illinois State after defeating Bradley 73-56 on the road.
• In non-conference play, the Purple Aces also traveled to fourth-ranked Iowa in November where they were handed a 115-62 defeat.
• Despite shooting at a 71.9 percent (289-402) clip at the free-throw line, Evansville leads the league and is ranked sixth nationally in both foul shot attempts (23.7) and makes (17) per game.
• Going 8-22 overall and 2-16 in conference play last year, the Purple Aces finished ninth in the then 10-team MVC. Evansville was picked ninth in the 2022-23 MVC Preseason Poll.
• Senior 6-foot-1 guard/forward Abby Feit, an All-MVC First Team selection last season and a preseason All-MVC Team member, is one of the top scorers and rebounders in the league averaging 15.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per outing.
• Fifth-year 5-foot-7 guard Myia Clark, a 2021-22 MVC All-Newcomer Team pick after transferring in from Saint Louis, is also averaging double-figure scoring (11.4 PPG).
• Graduate student Anna Newman, a 5-foot-4 guard, is the Purple Aces' top distributor averaging 4.7 assists per contest.

Up Next
Belmont returns to the Music City for a single game Thursday when the Bruins host Murray State in a 6:30 p.m. tipoff. The MVC home game will be broadcast on ESPN+. Next Sunday, Belmont travels to Bradley in Peoria, Illinois.
 
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