Men's Basketball Plays College of Charleston Sunday

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - - Belmont men's basketball returns to game action Sunday at College of Charleston.
 
The Bruins (7-0) defeated Toledo Nov. 26 to win the GEICO Coconut Hoops championship. Tyler Lundblade led four Belmont players in double figures with a season-high 22 points en route to tournament most valuable player honors. Lundblade, who led the nation in 3-point field goal percentage last season, currently ranks ninth nationally in 3-point field goals per game.
 
Belmont is off to its best start to a season since its 37-2 season of 1994-95.
 
Freshman Jack Smiley scored a career-high 17 points in 13 minutes vs. Saint Francis in the Coconut Hoops opening game. The 6-2 guard has 29 points and seven assists this season.
 
Sam Orme had 33 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five blocked shots, and three steals in the two games of Coconut Hoops earning all-tournament team honors.
 
Nic McClain has been outstanding in the second half this season; shooting 58 percent from the field with 18 rebounds, five steals, and 31 assists.
 
Brigham Rogers recorded his first career double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds Nov. 21. The 6-9 forward has 14 double figure scoring games.
 
Belmont handed out 46 assists on 69 made field goals during Coconut Hoops.
 
Belmont ranks third nationally in field goal percentage defense, 18^th nationally in defensive rebounds per game, and 37^th nationally in turnovers forced per game.
 
Belmont went 22-11 last season. The Bruins' 40 conference wins over the last three seasons rank third in the MVC.
 
With 20 conference championships and 361 conference wins – second only to Gonzaga – over the past two decades, Belmont is poised for another strong season.
 
The Bruins have 11 returning players, including guard Tyler Lundblade and forwards Sam Orme and Brigham Rogers who were named to the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Watch List.
 

What's Bruin

• Belmont is the only NCAA Division I institution in the nation to win 20 or more games 10 consecutive seasons in men's and women's basketball.
• Belmont has 147 victories since the start of the 2020 season, ranking Top 20 nationally.
• Belmont has won 20 conference championships (eight tournament, 12 regular season) since 2006. Only Gonzaga and Kansas have won more conference championships over that span.
• Belmont's 459 victories since 2007 leads the state of Tennessee - including Tennessee, Memphis, and Vanderbilt.
• Belmont finished Top 3 in the Missouri Valley Conference in 12 statistical categories in 2024-25 and ranked among national leaders in assists per game, 3-point field goal percentage, and 3-point field goals per game.
• Belmont head coach Casey Alexander is one of six NCAA Division I head coaches to win 20 or more games in nine consecutive seasons, joining Dana Altman (Oregon), Mark Few (Gonzaga), Greg McDermott (Creighton), and Kelvin Sampson (Houston), and Bill Self (Kansas).
• Matt Norlander of CBS Sports picked Belmont to win the Missouri Valley Conference and had the Bruins ranked No. 84 nationally in his preseason rankings. Belmont was picked fifth in the MVC Preseason Poll and third by Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook.
• Missouri Valley Conference teams are 13-4 in their first game in the NCAA tourney dating back to 2012. The league has combined for 21 wins in the NCAA Tournament in the past 12 NCAA championships and has had multiple bids 16 times since 1994.

 
Tyler Lundblade is the only player in college basketball to walk-on and earn a scholarship at three different schools (SMU, TCU, Belmont).
 
Former Belmont head coach Rick Byrd and former College of Charleston head coach John Kresse are both in the College Basketball Hall of Fame.
 
Former Belmont standout guard and 2015 OVC Championship hero Taylor Barnette was on the coaching staff of College of Charleston head coach Chris Mack at the University of Louisville.
 
Belmont has played against College of Charleston roster members Connor Hickman (Bradley) and Jlynn Counter (Middle Tennessee).
 
This marks the second meeting between Belmont and College of Charleston.
 
Belmont defeated College of Charleston, 72-65, Nov. 20, 1982. Former head coach Don Purdy directed Belmont to victory. Led by legendary head coach John Kresse, College of Charleston would go on to win the 1983 NAIA National Championship.
 
Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT from TD Arena. The game will be broadcast on FloCollege (subscription). The live play-by-play of Voice of the Bruins Steve Layman can be heard on Belmont Bruins Radio. In-game updates will be available via Twitter @BelmontMBB.

Belmont season tickets – which include the entire men's and women's basketball home schedule – are on sale now at belmontbruins.com/tickets. 
 
To become a Bruin Club member, contact Russell Grimm at (615) 460-5668 or russell.grimm@belmont.edu.
 
Belmont University men's basketball has been a postseason fixture for the last two decades, including nine berths to the NCAA Tournament. The Bruins have won 20 conference championships since 2006 - third-most nationally over that span (behind Gonzaga and Kansas). Belmont has won 20 or more games in 15 consecutive seasons (alongside Gonzaga, Kansas, and Oregon) and 19 or more games in 20 consecutive seasons (alongside Gonzaga, Kansas, and San Diego State). Belmont is among select programs with two or more first-round selections in the NBA Draft over the last six years (Ben Sheppard, Dylan Windler). Belmont University men's basketball boasts an NCAA-leading 19 Academic All-America selections since 2001 and is the only NCAA Division I program to make the NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) Honor Roll every year of its existence. Belmont is the only NCAA Division I institution in America whose men's and women's basketball programs have won 20 or more games in 10 consecutive seasons.