VALPARAISO, Ind. – Winning its sixth regular season conference championship in seven seasons, the Belmont University women's basketball team defeated Valparaiso University in thrilling fashion, 70-67, Saturday afternoon at the Athletics-Recreation Center in Valparaiso, Indiana. The Bruins (21-10, 17-3 MVC) needed all of junior guard
Destinee Wells' 26 second-half points and game-best 31 total to overcome a 13-point deficit.
Outscoring the host Beacons (7-22, 5-15 MVC) 40-33 in the second half, Belmont extended one of the nation's longest winning streaks to 14.
With the victory, the Bruins finish their inaugural Missouri Valley Conference slate at 17-3 and tied with Illinois State (23-7, 17-3 MVC) atop the 12-team league. Sharing the regular season crown with the Redbirds, Belmont will be the No. 2 seed in next weekend's MVC Tournament, which will be held in Moline, Illinois, Thursday-Sunday, March 9-12.
The regular season championship is the Bruins' ninth regular season conference title – five in the Ohio Valley Conference (2021-22, 2019-20, 2018-19, 2017-18, 2016-17) and three in the ASUN Conference (2006-07, 2005-06, 2003-04). Belmont has won a combined 16 conference championships, including regular season and tournament titles, in its NCAA era.
Wells scored 20 of the Bruins' 24 points in the fourth quarter as Belmont came back from down eight in the third quarter. A Wells layup with 1:24 to go put the Bruins up for good and junior forward
Madison Bartley hit clutch free throws with 15 seconds remaining.
Much like its recent MVC battles in February, Belmont relied on its late-game experience and made key stops down the stretch. Following a pair of Wells free throws in the final 30 seconds, Valparaiso's Olivia Brown nailed a deep three-pointer to make it a one-point game at 68-67 before Bartley made her pressure foul shots. The Bruins didn't allow a last-second Beacon three-point attempt to stand a chance.
Valparaiso made 15 threes, while Belmont uncharacteristically went 4-for-23 (17.4 percent) from outside. Both squads shot 43 percent from the field but the Bruins scored 32 points in the paint, compared to the Beacons' 16 points down low.
Assisting on 20 of its 24 made field goals, Valparaiso got 30 points off its bench and held a narrow 30-29 advantage on the boards.
Belmont scored the first basket of the afternoon but the Beacons started red-hot from distance. Valparaiso began 7-for-10 from beyond the arc and was 8-for-11 from downtown at the first called timeout of the second quarter.
The Beacons led by 13 at 30-17 following a 13-3 scoring run extending from late in the opening quarter to the 7:40 mark of the second period. The Bruins closed the half on a 13-4 run over the last seven minutes of the second quarter to get back within four at 34-30 heading into the break.
Valparaiso missed its last five three-point attempts in the first half, finishing 8-for-16 from long range across the first 20 minutes of action. Belmont shot 37 percent (10-of-27) in the opening half and was 1-for-10 from outside. Bartley had nine first-half points.
A pair of treys put the Beacons up 40-32 three minutes into the second half before the Bruins made their first real push to retake the lead. An 8-2 run got Belmont within two at 42-40 with 3:38 to go in the third quarter.
After Valparaiso got a layup and another triple, the Bruins scored six-straight points to close the quarter. Free throws from Wells and graduate guard
Sydni Harvey, along with a Wells jumper, made it a one-point affair at 47-46 heading into the final stanza.
The fourth quarter belonged to Wells as she scored Belmont's first 10 points and gave the Bruins their first lead since 2-0 with a driving layup to begin the deciding 10 minutes of play. Her three-pointer with just under six minutes left gave Belmont a 56-53 lead. However, the Beacons would be far from done.
After Valparaiso retook the lead at 61-60 on a Brown three, Wells responded with a pull-up jumper to put the Bruins back in front with three minutes to go. Another basket from Wells gave Belmont what looked like a safe three-point lead at 64-61 with two-and-a-half minutes remaining.
The Beacons' Brown hit another trey to knot the score at 64 with 1:46 showing on the clock. Moments later, Wells' driving layup at the 1:24 mark gave the Bruins a 66-64 lead they would not relinquish. Brown's improbable, contested shot from well outside the arc allowed Valparaiso one last bit of hope of pulling off the senior day upset but Wells and Bartley saw the victory through.
Behind Wells' heroics, Belmont went 8-for-13 in the fourth quarter and 7-for-7 at the free-throw line. Wells was 7-for-9 from the field and 5-for-5 at the charity stripe. The Bruins shot 50 percent in the second half and connected on all but one of their 15 foul shots (93.3 percent).
The Beacons were limited to 41.4 percent (12-of-29) second-half shooting and went 7-for-16 (43.8 percent) from distance.
Belmont made a season-high 22 free throws on 25 attempts (88 percent), while Valparaiso finished 15-for-32 (46.9 percent) from three-point land.
Wells went 11-for-19 from the floor for the afternoon and was 7-for-7 at the charity stripe. She also distributed a team-high five assists and came up with a trio of steals. Bartley added 14 points and six rebounds and sophomore forward
Kendal Cheesman scored 10 points on 4-for-6 shooting. The Bruins also got a game-high tying nine boards from sophomore guard
Kilyn McGuff.
Brown finished with 19 points on 5-for-8 three-point shooting for the Beacons and Valparaiso got 13 points and a game-high six assists from starting guard Ali Saunders. The Beacons' Leah Earnest had nine points and nine rebounds off the bench.
Up Next
As the No. 2 seed for next weekend's MVC Tournament in the Quad Cities, Belmont has earned a first-round bye and will play in the quarterfinals Friday, March 10 at 6 p.m. The Bruins will take on the winner of seventh-seeded Southern Illinois (11-18, 8-12 MVC) and 10th-seeded Indiana State (11-18, 6-14 MVC). The Hoops in the Heartland quarterfinal matchup will be broadcast on
ESPN+.
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