Women’s Basketball Takes on Bradley in Road Action Sunday Afternoon

 
PEORIA, Ill. – Following an overtime loss at Illinois State Friday night, the Belmont University women's basketball team looks to get back to its winning ways Sunday afternoon at Bradley. Tipoff from Renaissance Coliseum in Peoria, Illinois, is set for 2 p.m.
 
The Missouri Valley Conference road matchup will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Matt McClain (play-by-play) and Michael Goff (analyst) on the call. Dr. Rich Tiner will also provide live play-by-play of the action on Belmont Bruins Radio, available online. Live stats of the game can be followed by visiting BelmontBruins.com.
 
What's Bruin

• The Bruins (16-10, 12-3 MVC) were edged 83-78 in overtime Friday night by the Redbirds in Normal, Illinois. The loss was Belmont's first in overtime since Dec. 3, 2019, at Toledo (53-48).
• Prior to Friday, the Bruins had won four consecutive overtime games.
• With a 79-73 overtime win at Evansville on Jan. 29, Belmont has played multiple overtime games in conference play for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
• The Bruins routed visiting Valparaiso 77-37 last Sunday afternoon inside the Curb Event Center, winning their fourth straight with Belmont's largest margin of victory of the season.
• In half of their MVC wins, the Bruins have held their opponent under 60 points.
• Belmont leads the Valley in three important defensive categories – field goal percentage defense (.384), turnovers forced per game (17.4) and steals per game (10.2).
• The Bruins have won seven of their last nine true road games and are 7-4 in true road games this season.
• Belmont is 10-3 in 2026.
• The Bruins had their season-best six-game winning streak snapped at Murray State on Jan. 18.
• Belmont began MVC play 7-0, its best conference start since 2017-18 when the Bruins completed their second consecutive undefeated season in the Ohio Valley Conference.
• With its 77-67 home win over the Purple Aces on Dec. 17, Belmont secured its 10th-straight conference opening triumph.
• The Bruins played eight of nine games at home with two four-game homestands in December and January. Belmont had four of its six December games in the Curb and the Bruins' first four games of the new year were in the Music City.
• Junior guard Jailyn Banks has scored in double figures in all but one game she has played in this season (17-of-18) and leads Belmont with five 20-point outings. With a free throw at the four-minute mark of the third quarter against the Racers on Jan. 31, Banks reached her 1,000th career point to become the Bruins' 37th 1,000-point scorer. In the road victory at Drake on Feb. 5, Banks scored a career-high 26 points, including tallying 22 in the second half on 7-for-12 shooting.
• Graduate guard Tuti Jones broke Belmont's all-time steals record late in the third quarter in the Bruins' win at Indiana State on Jan. 15. She recorded her 405th career steal to surpass Daree Pilkinton Merritt, who had compiled 404 steals from 1988-91.
• Sophomore forward Hilary Fuller leads Belmont with 18 double-figure scoring games on the season and has posted at least 20 points four times in MVC play.
• Graduate guard Avery Strickland was named MVC Newcomer of the Week on Feb. 2 after scoring a career-high 23 points and snagging eight rebounds in the Bruins' overtime road win at Evansville on Jan. 29. Like Banks and Fuller, Strickland has also reached the 20-point mark four times this season.
• Belmont faced three top-15 ranked Southeastern Conference opponents during non-conference play. The Bruins hosted 15th-ranked Kentucky on Dec. 14 after challenging 12th-ranked Tennessee on Nov. 13 in Knoxville and sixth-ranked Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma, in their season opener.
• Ninth-year program leader Bart Brooks secured his 200th career victory with Belmont's 72-66 road win at Dayton on Nov. 16. He reached the career milestone in only 270 games as a head coach.
• The Bruins went on a historic national postseason run in the 2025 Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT), where they reached the championship game. It was Belmont's deepest national postseason run in any sport.
• For the second time in four seasons, the Bruins were picked as the preseason favorites to win the MVC. Belmont captured a regular season championship in its first season in the Valley in 2022-23.
• Including last season, the Bruins have reached the MVC Tournament championship game two of the last three years.
• Belmont went 26-13 last season and 15-5 in the MVC, tying for third in the final league standings.
• The Bruins' three returning starters – Jones, Banks and senior guard Emily La Chapell – in addition to graduate transfer Strickland (Tennessee/Pittsburgh), were named players to watch by the MVC.
• Jones, Banks and La Chapell were the only three players to start all 39 games for Belmont last season.
• The Bruins returned eight total letter winners and welcomed seven newcomers over the summer, including five freshmen – guard Rylie Beers (Littleton, Colo.), guard Kate McGinnis (Kimberly, Wis.), forward Dacarra Ward (Memphis, Tenn.), forward Leah West (Greensburg, Ind.) and guard Tatum Woodson (Minnetonka, Minn.) – and two transfers – Strickland and junior center KK Brodie (Pepperdine).

Last Time Out

• Belmont led by as much as 12 in the first half and held an eight-point lead at halftime Friday night at Illinois State, but the Redbirds outscored the Bruins 43-35 in the second half behind 61 percent (14-of-23) shooting.
• In overtime, Belmont was held to 3-for-9 from the field.
• The Bruins had possession with the score tied at 68 with 16.5 seconds remaining in regulation but couldn't get a three-pointer at the buzzer to fall.
• With under 20 seconds left in overtime and trailing 79-76, Belmont had two good looks from beyond the arc but couldn't get either to go.
• Illinois State went 8-for-10 at the free-throw line in overtime and was 3-for-3 from the floor, including 1-for-1 from outside.
• The Bruins committed a season-low six turnovers and assisted on 16 of their 25 baskets.
• The Redbirds outrebounded Belmont 45-35 and outscored the Bruins 34-28 in the paint.
• Belmont scored 15 points off 18 Illinois State turnovers but got only eight points off the bench.
• The Redbirds also outscored the Bruins 19-7 in fastbreak points.
• Illinois State led for just over 11-and-a-half minutes of the contest.
• After Belmont limited the Redbirds to 3-for-14 (21.4 percent) from the field in the opening quarter, Illinois State shot 83.3 percent (10-of-12) in the third period, including going 3-for-3 from distance.
• The Bruins shot 31 percent (9-of-29) in the second half and were 4-for-17 (23.5 percent) from long range.
• Belmont finished 11-for-41 (26.8 percent) from deep and went 34.7 percent (25-of-72) overall.
• The Redbirds connected on seven of their 14 three-point attempts.
• Banks scored a career-high tying 26 points and made a career-high six threes.
• Jones snatched a career-best eight steals and dished out five assists as the Bruins came up with 13 takeaways. It was the 11th game this season in which Belmont recorded at least 12 steals.
• Strickland (17) and Fuller (14) also scored in double figures, while Brodie distributed a career-high five assists.

Player of the Week

• Jones was named both MVC and Tennessee Sports Writers Association (TSWA) Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 8-14 after scoring a season-high 24 points on 6-for-11 shooting, including making 4-for-9 from outside, grabbing a season-best 10 rebounds, dishing out a team-high five assists, and coming up with a game-high three steals against top-15 ranked Kentucky on Dec. 14. She was also a perfect 8-for-8 at the free-throw line.
• Jones' 24-point outing against the nationally-ranked Wildcats was her 80th career double-figure scoring game.

1,500 Points and All-Tournament Team Honors

• Jones reached 1,500 career points with her 19-point performance versus now 10th-ranked Ohio State on Nov. 24 in Nassau, Bahamas. She is only the 11th Bruin to reach 1,500 career points and is second in scoring in Belmont's NCAA era (1,702 points).
• The Bruins' all-time steals leader (428), Jones is also Belmont's all-time leader in both games started (162) and games played (163).
• Across all divisions of NCAA basketball, Jones is the nation's current leader in games played and is third among active career steals leaders.
• After averaging 17.5 points on 57.9 percent (11-of-19) shooting, including going 8-for-13 (61.5 percent) from distance, 4.5 rebounds, 3.0 steals and 2.5 assists in the Bruins' two games in the Bahamas, Jones was named to the 2025 Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship Goombay Division All-Tournament Team.

A Winning Program

• In its 58th season as a program, Belmont has claimed the 15th-most victories in NCAA Division I women's basketball (1,125).
• The Bruins entered 2025-26 with the 30th-best all-time winning percentage (.658).
• Belmont is one of only nine teams in the nation to have won 20-plus games for 10-straight seasons. UConn, South Carolina, Baylor, Iowa, NC State, Indiana, South Dakota State and Florida Gulf Coast are the others.
• The Bruins' 73.1 winning percentage (226-83) over the previous 10 seasons is the highest of any Division I women's basketball program in the state of Tennessee.
• Belmont is the only school in the nation to win 20-plus games for 10 consecutive seasons in both women's and men's basketball.

A Championship Program

• The Bruins (11) are one of only six programs in the country to have won 10 or more combined conference championships, regular season and tournament, over the last nine seasons. UConn (18), Florida Gulf Coast (16), South Carolina (13), South Dakota State (11) and Princeton (10) are the others.
• Since the 2012-13 season, Belmont has won 12 combined conference championships, including regular season and tournament titles.
• The Bruins have won 16 total conference championships – nine regular season and seven tournament titles – in Belmont's NCAA era.

National Postseason Success

• The Bruins have claimed seven national postseason wins in the last five years, including back-to-back trips to the NCAA Tournament round of 32 in 2021 and 2022.
• Belmont has earned a national postseason bid in 12 of the last 13 seasons, including six trips to the NCAA Tournament (2022, 2021, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016).
• The Bruins also reached the Big Dance in 2007 after winning the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament.
• Belmont has participated in the last two WBITs and the 2023 WNIT.
• Playing into April for the first time in school history, the Bruins rattled off four wins in the 2025 WBIT. After taking out nearby Middle Tennessee in the opening round, Belmont overcame a 21-point deficit against Northern Arizona in the second round. The Bruins then doubled up top-seeded James Madison, who was an NCAA Tournament bubble team and receiving votes in both national polls, by 45 points on the road in the quarterfinals. In the WBIT semifinals inside historic Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Belmont ousted BIG EAST Conference mainstay Villanova.
• The Bruins' comeback against the Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona in the WBIT second round last March tied for the largest deficit overcome to win any NCAA postseason game in Division I women's basketball history.

Conference Dominance

• Belmont has finished in the top three of its conference in 13 of the last 14 seasons, including each of the last 10.
• The Bruins have played in a conference tournament championship game eight of the last 10 years.
• Since the 2012-13 season, Belmont has compiled a remarkable 201-43 (.824) record in conference play.
• Altogether, including conference tournaments, the Bruins have gone 227-50 (.819) against league opponents across the last 14 seasons.

Head Coach Bart Brooks

• For the third-straight year, coach Brooks was named to the preseason watch list for the Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Award presented by Her Hoop Stats.
• In nine seasons, coach Brooks has compiled a remarkable 214-78 record. His 73.3 winning percentage ranks among the top 20 of active head coaches in Division I women's basketball.
• No other current Division I head coach with eight seasons or fewer under their belt has won more games than coach Brooks.
• Coach Brooks is a ridiculous 141-23 (.860) in conference action with nine combined conference championships, including regular season and tournament titles. He has never lost more than five league games in any given season and has finished no worse than third across two different conferences.
• Including conference tournament games, coach Brooks is an astonishing 158-27 (.854) against conference opponents.
• Over the last eight postseasons, coach Brooks has gone 24-11 (.686).
• In the key months of February and March under coach Brooks' direction, Belmont is 96-20 (.828).
• Coach Brooks was the third-fastest head coach to 100 career victories in Division I women's basketball history (Leon Barmore, Louisiana Tech and Karl Smesko, Florida Gulf Coast).

Challenging the Nation's Best

• Coach Brooks and the Bruins annually play one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the nation and this season was no different.
• Six of Belmont's 11 non-conference opponents were receiving votes in either or both the Associated Press (AP) Top 25 and USA TODAY Sports/Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Coaches Poll. The Bruins took on a trio of top-15 teams, including hosting No. 15/15 Kentucky on Dec. 14 after traveling to both No. 6/7 Oklahoma (Nov. 3) and No. 12/12 Tennessee (Nov. 13). In addition to hosting Duke (Dec. 20), who was receiving 13 votes in the coaches poll, and receiving-votes Princeton (Dec. 6), Belmont went up against receiving-votes Ohio State in the Bahamas (Nov. 24).
• With Oklahoma, Tennessee, Ohio State, Princeton, Kentucky and Duke, the Bruins faced six NCAA Tournament teams from a season ago during their non-conference slate. Of those, five reached at least the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament and three made it to the Sweet 16 with the Blue Devils continuing on to the Elite Eight.

Mid-Major Rankings

• Belmont is receiving the most votes (76) of teams not ranked in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll.

 Versus Bradley

• Sunday afternoon will be just the sixth all-time meeting between the Bruins and the Braves.
• Belmont has won all five previous matchups.
• The Bruins' average margin of victory in the series is 18 points, including a convincing 78-57 win over Bradley in Nashville on Jan. 2.
• Belmont put together a complete performance in its triumph over the Braves to start the new year, shooting 47.5 percent (28-of-59) and holding a plus-13 advantage on the boards (45-32). The Bruins held Bradley to 31.7 percent (20-of-63) shooting and outscored the Braves 38-18 in the paint. Belmont got 22 points off its bench and four Bruins scored in double figures led by Fuller's 20 points and career-high tying four assists.
• Belmont is 2-0 in Peoria with its last visit to Bradley resulting in a narrow, 77-72 win nearly two years ago on March 7, 2024. The Bruins overcame a nine-point deficit early in the fourth quarter by closing the game on a 22-8 run.
• The two teams first met on Feb. 5, 2023, inside Renaissance Coliseum with Belmont prevailing, 68-54.

About the Braves

• The Braves (18-9, 11-5 MVC) also had a four-game winning streak snapped Friday evening when they were defeated 72-40 by visiting Murray State.
• Bradley had won seven of its previous eight games, with its lone loss in that span a 58-54 overtime affair at Illinois State on Feb. 1.
• Friday's loss to the Racers was the Braves' first in Peoria this season. Bradley is 11-1 at home.
• The Braves also dropped a 73-70 decision at Northern Iowa on Jan. 18 and fell 93-82 in double overtime at Murray State on Jan. 4.
• Bradley finished ninth in the Valley last season, going 7-13 in MVC action and 14-19 overall.
• The Braves are second in the Valley in scoring defense, allowing only 64.4 points per game, and lead the league in three-point percentage (.351).
• Fifth-year 5-foot-10 guard/forward Kaylen Nelson leads the MVC and ranks in the top 45 nationally in three-point percentage (.401), made three-pointers (75) and made threes per game (2.8). She leads Bradley and is fourth in the Valley in scoring (17.6 PPG).
• Freshman 5-foot-9 guard Maya Foz, a seven-time MVC Freshman of the Week, is also averaging double-figure scoring (14.6 PPG).
• Sophomore 5-foot-7 guard Mya Wardle, the daughter of Braves men's basketball head coach Brian Wardle, leads Bradley in assists (3.6 APG).
• Senior 6-foot-2 forward Amy O'Hara (6.1 RPG) and sophomore 6-foot-1 forward Ellie McDermid (6.0 RPG) lead the Braves on the glass.

Up Next
The Bruins host Indiana State next Saturday for senior day. Tipoff from the Curb in the Music City is slated for 4 p.m. The MVC home matchup will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Jones, Claire Hyde, Strickland and La Chapell honored prior to the game.
 
Tickets
Single-game tickets for the 2025-26 season are on sale and can be purchased by visiting BelmontBruins.com/Tickets or calling 615-460-BALL.
 
Credit Union 1 MVC Tournament
The 2026 Credit Union 1 MVC Tournament will be held Thursday-Sunday, March 12-15 in Coralville, Iowa, at Xtream Arena. All-session tournament passes are on sale now and can be purchased here. Rooms are also available for booking at the official Belmont fan hotel – Drury Inn & Suites.
 
How to Follow
Follow Belmont women's basketball on social media - @BelmontWBB on X, formerly Twitter, @belmontwbb on Instagram and Belmont Women's Basketball on Facebook - for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.