Bruins Face Northern Iowa Sunday Afternoon, Wrap Up Four-Game Road Stretch

 
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Finishing off a four-game road stretch, the Belmont University women's basketball team takes on Northern Iowa Sunday afternoon inside the McLeod Center in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m.
 
The matinee matchup will be broadcast on The Valley on ESPN available on ESPN+ with Brad Wells (play-by-play) and Jacqui Kalin (analyst) on the call. The conference road test can also be heard on Belmont Bruins Radio on iHeart Radio with Dr. Rich Tiner providing play-by-play of the action. Live in-game statistics will be available at BelmontBruins.com.
 
What's Bruin

• The Bruins (12-5, 5-1 MVC) went 2-0 last weekend in Indiana with wins over the University of Evansville and Indiana State but were handed their first Missouri Valley Conference loss of the season Friday evening at Drake.
• The host Bulldogs defeated Belmont 69-65 in Des Moines, Iowa, after keeping the Bruins scoreless for the final 4:21 of play.
• Prior to Belmont's setback Friday, the Bruins had won five straight to begin MVC action. Belmont also won five in a row in non-conference play. The Bruins have put together at least a five-game winning streak in 12-straight seasons dating back to 2012-13.
• Belmont won consecutive games by over 40 points for the first time since the 2017-18 season with a 44-point drubbing of the Purple Aces (84-40) last Friday after defeating Bradley by 42 points (89-47) at home on Saturday, Jan. 6.
• Leading the Valley in both scoring (60.4 PPG) and field goal percentage (.382) defense, the Bruins have allowed over 61 points just once in their six MVC outings.
• Drake's 69 points scored on Belmont were the most the Bruins have given up in conference play this season.
• Belmont has held 11 of its 17 opponents this season under 65 points and kept eight teams under 60 points.
• Head coach Bart Brooks earned his 100th career conference win in only 112 league games on Saturday, Jan. 6 with the Bruins' lopsided home win against the visiting Braves.
• Belmont is 4-3 in true road games this season and has gone 5-4 away from the Music City.
• Two of the Bruins' five losses have been against top-15 opponents – then No. 4 Stanford and No. 13 Ohio State.
• Belmont moved up two more spots in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25^® and is now ranked No. 8.

 
Last Time Out

• The Bruins' loss to the Bulldogs Friday evening was Belmont's first in Valley play in over a year.
• The Bruins had won 19-straight MVC games going back to a 70-56 home loss to Illinois State on Jan. 15, 2023.
• A rematch of last year's MVC Tournament championship game, Friday's affair didn't disappoint. With an atmosphere worthy of March, Belmont held the lead for over 30 minutes of game action and led by as much as 10 in the second quarter. However, Drake outscored the Bruins 23-13 in the fourth quarter and ended the game on a 12-3 scoring run over the closing five-and-a-half minutes.
• The Bulldogs led for only 5:12 of the evening and took their first lead of the game by ending the first half on a 11-0 run after Belmont went up 30-20.
• The Bruins' inspired defensive play kept Drake, who owns one of the top offenses in the country, out of rhythm for the majority of the contest. Belmont made a season-high eight blocks, which were the most in a game since last February versus the Bulldogs, and came up with nine steals.
• The Bruins limited one of the top shooting teams in the nation to 39.1 percent from the field and 8-for-30 from behind the arc.
• Despite Belmont's stops and 10-for-25 three-point shooting, Drake made timely baskets late and controlled the interior. The Bulldogs outscored the Bruins 36-24 in the paint, held a plus-14 advantage on the glass (47-33) and earned 16 points off 17 offensive boards.
• Belmont was also kept off the free-throw line, earning a season-low four foul shots.
• Junior forward Kendal Cheesman scored a game-high 18 points, 10 of which came in the second half, and went 8-for-15 from the floor while making a career-high three blocks.
• Redshirt junior guard Tuti Jones finished with 15 points, four assists, three rebounds and three steals without committing a turnover.
• Freshman standout guard Jailyn Banks totaled 12 points and four assists and junior forward Kilyn McGuff poured in 11 points on 4-for-5 shooting, including going 3-for-3 from distance, after a two-game absence. Fellow junior forward Tessa Miller brought down a game-best 11 rebounds and distributed a season-high tying five assists.

 
Another Challenging Non-Conference

• Once again playing one of the most strenuous non-conference schedules in the nation, the Bruins went 7-4 with their four losses coming against power conference opponents. Three of Belmont's four losses were away from Nashville as the Bruins went 4-1 at the Curb Event Center.
• Six of Belmont's 11 non-conference opponents were from power conferences. Five of the Bruins' first six games of the season were against power conference programs.
• Belmont defeated two power conference teams during the non-conference portion of the schedule, routing Southeastern Conference mainstay Georgia 76-50 in the Bruins' home opener on Nov. 10 and toppling the Big Ten Conference's Northwestern 83-61 at the Ball Dawgs Classic in Las Vegas on Nov. 24.
• Belmont owns five victories over power conference teams in four seasons. In addition to the Lady Bulldogs and the Wildcats, the Bruins have earned wins against Oregon, Ole Miss and Auburn in recent years.
• Belmont also came within a point of defeating receiving-votes Mississippi State on Sunday, Nov. 19 inside the Curb. A free-throw line jumper by Banks and a putback attempt from McGuff both rimmed off in the final seconds.

Among the Toughest Schedules in the Nation

• The Panthers are the 13th of 14 opponents on Belmont's schedule who had a winning record in 2022-23, the ninth of 10 adversaries who won 20 or more games last year and the 11th of 12 teams who made a national postseason tournament last March.
• The Bruins' schedule also features six NCAA Tournament teams from a season ago (Georgia, Mississippi State, Stanford, Middle Tennessee, Ohio State, Drake).

Nothing but NET

• Seven of Belmont's 17 opponents thus far are ranked in the top 100 of the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET), including No. 3 Stanford and No. 15 Ohio State. The Bruins are currently 71st in the NET.
• Northern Iowa enters Sunday as the fifth-highest ranked MVC team in the NET, sitting just outside the top 125 at No. 136.

 
Storied Success

• Belmont won its sixth regular season conference championship in seven seasons last year. The Bruins have captured nine regular season conference titles in Belmont's NCAA era. Including the regular season and league tournament, the Bruins have won 16 combined conference championships in three different Division I conferences (MVC, OVC and Atlantic Sun Conference).
• Belmont is one of only 11 teams in the nation to have won 20 or more games for eight-straight seasons.
• The Bruins (11) are one of only three programs to have won more than 10 combined conference championships (regular season and tournament) over the last seven seasons. UConn (14) and Florida Gulf Coast (12) are the other two.
• Belmont is the only school in the nation to win 20-plus games for eight consecutive seasons in both women's and men's basketball.
• The Bruins have either been ranked or received votes in at least one of the two major national polls each of the last eight seasons.
• Belmont has won the 17th-most games in NCAA Division I women's basketball history (1,069).

Conference Dominance

• Since the 2012-13 season, the Bruins have compiled a remarkable 162-33 (.831) record in league play and won 12 combined championships, including regular season and tournament titles.
• Coach Brooks is a ridiculous 102-13 (.887) in conference action in seven seasons.
• Altogether, including conference tournaments, Belmont has gone 185-38 (.830) against league opposition over the last 12 seasons.

 
Under Coach Brooks

• In his seventh season at the helm, coach Brooks picked up his 150th win in less than 200 career games with the Bruins' 72-68 victory at Troy on Nov. 29.
• Coach Brooks was named to the preseason watch list for the 2024 Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Award presented by Her Hoop Stats. Since his arrival in Nashville, he has led Belmont to a 158-51 (.756) record, four NCAA Tournaments and back-to-back trips to the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 in 2021 and 2022. The third-fastest head coach to 100 career victories in Division I women's basketball history, Brooks owns an astounding record of 116-15 (.885) against conference opponents, including conference tournament games. He ranks among the top 10 of active Division I head coaches in terms of winning percentage.

 
MVC Preseason Poll

• The Bruins were picked fourth in the MVC but gained one first-place vote in the preseason predicted order of finish after capturing a regular season championship in Belmont's first year in the conference in 2022-23. Going 23-12 overall and 17-3 in the Valley, the Bruins reached their third-straight conference tournament title game and made their 10th national postseason appearance in 11 seasons with an at-large bid to the WNIT.

Versus Northern Iowa

• Sunday afternoon will be the fourth all-time meeting between the two programs with Belmont winning the first three matchups, which all took place last year.
• On Jan. 8 last winter, the Bruins visited the McLeod Center and earned a gritty, 67-61 victory behind McGuff's team-high tying 14 points and seven rebounds. The win was Belmont's first-ever MVC road triumph and first victory in the state of Iowa.
• Late last February, the Bruins defeated the Panthers 82-77 in Nashville. Belmont knocked down 11 three-pointers and got a game-best 20 points from McGuff.
• In the semifinals of the 2023 MVC Tournament in Moline, Illinois, the second-seeded Bruins clinched a spot in the Hoops in the Heartland title game with a hard-fought 69-62 win over third-seeded Northern Iowa. The triumph capped Belmont's remarkable 16-game win streak, which was one of the longest in the nation at the time.
• McGuff reached double figures in all three of last year's meetings, averaging 15 points.

 
About the Panthers

• Led by Tanya Warren, the longest-tenured active head coach in the MVC in her 17th season, the Panthers (5-9, 4-1 MVC) have won four straight after dropping their Valley opener on a buzzer-beater at Missouri State.
• Northern Iowa is coming off a 20-point, 95-75 shellacking of Murray State Friday night in Cedar Falls. The Racers entered the game unbeaten in MVC play and riding an 11-game winning streak, but the Panthers went 11-for-23 from three-point range and 12-for-13 at the free-throw line while shooting 50 percent (36-of-72) for the game.
• Northern Iowa also owns Valley wins over Evansville (82-52), Indiana State (85-79) and Valparaiso (76-52). The Panthers have played one game less in the MVC after their road contest at UIC was postponed due to a facility issue.
• Like the Bruins, Northern Iowa played an extremely difficult non-conference schedule. After winning their season opener against a very good Green Bay squad (78-67), the Panthers lost nine in order.
• Northern Iowa was voted as the preseason favorite to win the Valley's regular season title after garnering 33 first-place nods. The Panthers went 16-4 in the MVC last season and 23-10 overall, reaching the second round of the WNIT after receiving an at-large bid and hosting in the first round.
• Junior 6-foot-1 forward Grace Boffeli was named preseason MVC Player of the Year and preseason All-MVC First Team as a returning All-MVC First Team performer. Playing in only eight games thus far this season, Boffeli is averaging 13.5 points and a team-best 7.4 rebounds.
• Junior 5-foot-6 guard Maya McDermott, a preseason All-MVC First Team pick after earning second-team honors last year, leads Northern Iowa in scoring (14.3 PPG) and assists (3.4 APG).
• Junior 5-foot-10 guard Emerson Green is averaging 9.9 points per outing but has scored in double figures in the last four games, including notching 23 points on 11-for-15 shooting against Murray State.

 
Up Next
Belmont returns to the Music City next weekend, hosting Missouri State Friday night at 6:30 p.m. and welcoming Southern Illinois next Sunday, Jan. 28.

How to Follow
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