Bruins Suffer 79-47 Setback at 14th-Ranked Duke Thursday Night in Cameron Indoor

DURHAM, N.C. – For the third time in the first three weeks of the 2024-25 season, the Belmont University women's basketball team took on a top-15 ranked opponent as the Bruins faced 14th-ranked Duke Thursday night inside historic Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina. In only the second-ever meeting between the two teams and Belmont's first visit to Cameron Indoor, the host Blue Devils (5-1) defeated the Bruins 79-47 behind 55.2 percent (32-of-58) shooting.
 
Belmont (2-3) was outscored 40-17 in the first half after being outpaced 23-8 in the second quarter.
 
The Bruins did force 24 Duke turnovers and earned a season-high 14 steals led by senior forward Carmyn Harrison's career-best six takeaways.
 
The Blue Devils got 26 of their 79 points off Belmont's 20 turnovers and Duke controlled the paint. Outscoring the Bruins 46-20 in the paint, the Blue Devils outworked Belmont 46-24 on the glass.
 
Duke got 51 of its points off the bench and the Blue Devils scored 19 points off 14 offensive rebounds.
 
The Bruins began on a strong note with Harrison finishing at the rim and graduate guard Kendall Holmes putting Belmont in front 4-3 two minutes in. Junior guard Emily La Chapell hit a three-pointer three minutes in and Harrison took it to the hole once again to give the Bruins a promising 9-5 start through the opening five minutes of play.
 
However, Harrison's basket at the 5:55 mark of the first quarter would be Belmont's last points until nearly three minutes into the second quarter. Duke went on a deflating 16-0 scoring run over eight-and-a-half minutes of action to take a 21-9 lead.
 
Sophomore guard Jailyn Banks then gave the Bruins new life with six consecutive points. She scored on a deep jumper while being fouled before knocking down a triple to get Belmont back within six at 21-15 with 6:44 to go in the half.
 
Five quick Blue Devil points put the home team back up by 11 at 26-15 midway through the second quarter and the Bruins trailed by double figures the rest of the way. Duke ended the second quarter on a 19-2 run to take a commanding 40-17 lead into the locker room.
 
Belmont made only three field goals in the second quarter as the Blue Devils got 10 of their points in the frame from reserve freshman forward Toby Fournier. The Bruins were limited to 28 percent (7-of-25) shooting in the first half and went 2-for-8 from distance. Duke shot 52.9 percent (18-of-34) across the first 20 minutes.
 
Sparked by back-to-back layups from Harrison and a fastbreak three by graduate guard Tuti Jones, Belmont scored the first seven points of the second half. Beginning to claw their way back, the Bruins went on a 16-4 run to get within 11 immediately following the third-quarter media timeout.
 
Holmes connected on a three-pointer to make it 44-33 just over five minutes into the second half. From there, the Blue Devils outscored Belmont 13-2 to close the third quarter. Despite Duke's run, the Bruins outpaced the Blue Devils 18-17 in the quarter with 3-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc.
 
Duke took a 57-35 lead into the final quarter.
 
Belmont was unable to get any closer than 22 in the fourth quarter as the Blue Devils outscored the Bruins 22-12. La Chapell put up six points in the final stanza, but Duke went 6-for-9 from the field and was 3-for-3 from deep in the fourth. Eleven of the Blue Devils' 22 fourth-quarter points came from reserve guard Oluchi Okananwa.
 
Harrison finished with a career-high 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting, to go along with her six steals and five rebounds, and La Chapell also reached double figures with 11 points. Jones accounted for a trio of assists and three steals.
 
Fournier led the way for Duke with a career-high 25 points on 10-for-15 shooting and three blocks. Okananwa scored 15 points for the Blue Devils and starting guard Ashlon Jackson provided 14. Duke's Jordan Wood tallied a game-high 13 rebounds and four assists.
 
Of Note

• Thursday night's game was a rematch of the 2018 NCAA Tournament first round matchup between 12th-seeded Belmont and the fifth-seeded Blue Devils. Both teams were ranked in the top 25 in the nation.
• All three of the Bruins' losses this season have been to top-15 opponents – at No. 13 Kansas State in the season opener on Nov. 7 and versus No. 12 Ohio State this past Sunday afternoon in Nashville.

Up Next
Belmont has an eight-day break from game action as the Bruins make their way to the Sunshine State for the 2024 Elevance Health Fort Myers Tip-Off in Florida, hosted over Thanksgiving week. Held Thursday-Saturday, Nov. 28-30 at Suncoast Credit Union Arena in Fort Myers, Belmont will take on the Big Ten Conference's Michigan next Friday, Nov. 29 at 1 p.m. CT/2 p.m. ET in the Shell Division of the MTE (multi-team event). Next Saturday, Nov. 30, the Bruins will face either the Atlantic Coast Conference's Virginia Tech or Davidson College.
 
Ticket Info
Season tickets are on sale now for $199 per seat and include all women's and men's basketball home games.
 
View available seating and purchase your seats.
 
Flex pack plans for the 2024-25 season are also on sale and can be purchased here.
 
For more information, call 615-460-BALL or visit BelmontBruins.com/Tickets.
 
How to Follow
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