Women’s Basketball Hosts Indiana State for Senior Day Saturday

 
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – After a pair of challenging road games, the Belmont University women's basketball team returns to the Curb Event Center Saturday afternoon for senior day. The Bruins host Indiana State in a 4 p.m. tipoff from the Music City.
 
The Missouri Valley Conference home game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Dr. Rich Tiner (play-by-play) and former Belmont guard Hannah Harmeyer ('19) (analyst) on the call. The game can also be heard on Belmont Bruins Radio, available online. Live stats of the contest can be followed by visiting BelmontBruins.com.
 
Navy Belmont jerseys will be given away to all fans in attendance beginning one hour prior to tipoff, while supplies last.
 
Thank You, Seniors
Prior to the game, graduate guard Avery Strickland, redshirt junior guard Claire Hyde, senior guard Emily La Chapell and graduate guard Tuti Jones will all be honored on the court for their commitment and dedication to the Bruin program. Between the four, Belmont has won seven national postseason games, reached back-to-back NCAA Tournament second rounds and played for a national postseason title with its appearance in the 2025 Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT) championship game. In addition to Strickland, Hyde, La Chapell and Jones, graduate assistant coach Paige Schumann and graduate assistant for basketball operations Virginia Stuart will be recognized for their service to the Bruins.
 
What's Bruin

• Belmont (16-11, 12-4 MVC) went 0-2 in its trip to the Land of Lincoln last weekend, falling in overtime at Illinois State last Friday night before being edged 51-47 at Bradley this past Sunday afternoon.
• The Bruins' 83-78 overtime road loss to the Redbirds snapped a four-game winning streak.
• In Belmont's last game at the Curb, the Bruins routed Valparaiso 77-37 for their largest margin of victory of the season.
• Belmont has won six of its last seven at home and is 9-4 at the Curb this season.
• In half of their MVC wins, the Bruins have held their opponent under 60 points.
• Belmont leads the Valley in a pair of important defensive categories – turnovers forced per game (17.4) and steals per game (10.3), while second in field goal percentage defense (.385).
• The Bruins are 10-4 in 2026.
• Belmont had its season-best six-game winning streak halted at Murray State on Jan. 18.
• The Bruins began MVC play 7-0, their best conference start since 2017-18 when Belmont completed its second consecutive undefeated season in the Ohio Valley Conference.
• With their 77-67 home win over Evansville on Dec. 17, the Bruins secured their 10th-straight conference opening triumph.
• Belmont played eight of nine games at home with two four-game homestands in December and January. The Bruins had four of their six December games in the Curb and Belmont's 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 (18-of-19) and leads the Bruins 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 Belmont's 37th 1,000-point scorer. In the Bruins' victory at Drake on Feb. 5 and overtime affair at Illinois State on Feb. 20, Banks scored a career-high 26 points.
• 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 co-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 over the Purple Aces 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

• Despite shooting a near season-low 28 percent (14-of-50) and committing 17 turnovers against the Braves in Peoria, Illinois, Belmont had a chance to tie or take the lead multiple times in the last 90 seconds.
• Trailing by only two at 49-47, the Bruins couldn't get three-pointers from sophomore guard Sanaa Tripp and Jones to fall, and a Banks jumper was blocked in the final 10 seconds.
• Belmont got off to a 9-0 start inside Renaissance Coliseum and held Bradley scoreless for the first 4:06 of the contest, however, the Braves led by as much as nine at 41-32 with just under seven minutes to go.
• Bradley outscored the Bruins 30-18 in the paint and tallied 15 points off Belmont's offensive miscues.
• The Bruins outworked the Braves 39-35 on the glass and got 10 points on 10 offensive rebounds.
• For the 12th time this season, Belmont recorded at least 12 steals, finishing with 13 takeaways for the second consecutive game.
• The Bruins' 14 made field goals were the fewest in a game this season.
• Belmont scored just 18 first-half points and only five points in the second quarter, the Bruins' second-lowest scoring half and quarter of the season.
• Banks paced Belmont with 11 points, nine of which she scored in the second half, and Strickland also reached double figures with 10 points.
• Sophomore guard Quinn Eubank collected a game-high nine rebounds and scored nine points, while Jones secured eight boards and earned a game-best five steals.

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 13th-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 (1,705 points).
• The Bruins' all-time steals leader (433), Jones is also Belmont's all-time leader in both games started (163) and games played (164).
• 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 201-44 (.820) record in conference play.
• Altogether, including conference tournaments, the Bruins have gone 227-51 (.817) 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 214-79 record. His 73.0 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 141-24 (.855) 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 158-28 (.849) 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 96-21 (.821).
• 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 seven votes in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll.

At the Curb

• The Bruins are 123-21 (.854) at home since the start of the 2015-16 season.
• Belmont has a home winning percentage of .749 (221-74) inside the Curb since the arena opened prior to the 2003-04 season.
• Under coach Brooks, the Bruins are an exceptional 99-20 (.832) at the Curb.
• In conference play, Belmont has been even more dominant at home, going 107-15 (.877) since 2012. In his first nine seasons, coach Brooks has lost only nine league games at the Curb with a 73-9 (.890) record.
• For four-straight seasons and nine of the last 10, the Bruins have won 10 or more games at the Curb.

Versus Indiana State

• Saturday afternoon will be the 13th all-time meeting between Belmont and the Sycamores with the Bruins holding a commanding 10-2 lead in the series.
• Since Belmont joined the Valley prior to the 2022-23 season, the Bruins are a perfect 7-0 versus Indiana State.
• Belmont defeated the Sycamores 85-77 in Terre Haute, Indiana, on Jan. 15 behind 11 made triples and 42 combined points from Jones (22) and Strickland (20). The Bruins forced 22 Indiana State turnovers and scored 45 points in the second half. The Sycamores were within five points with two minutes left, but Brodie hit a clutch three-pointer and Jones forced a pivotal turnover on Indiana State's ensuing inbound.
• Last season, Belmont handled the Sycamores by a combined 51 points, including an 88-58 victory at the Curb on Jan. 26, 2025. Five Bruins reached double-figure scoring in both of last year's wins.
• Belmont is 4-0 against Indiana State at the Curb.
• The two teams met five times prior to the Bruins joining the MVC, splitting a home-and-home series during the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons.
• Belmont went 2-1 versus the Sycamores in the mid-to-late 1970s.

About the Sycamores

• Indiana State (9-19, 5-13 MVC) has lost six of its last seven, including a 115-67 shellacking at Murray State Thursday night.
• The Sycamores' lone win since a narrow, 78-75 triumph at Evansville on Feb. 1, was an 81-73 home victory over Southern Illinois last Saturday on senior day.
• Indiana State is 3-11 in true road games this season, defeating Western Kentucky (65-60) and Austin Peay (77-73) during its non-conference schedule.
• The Sycamores went 4-28 overall in 2024-25, going 2-18 in the Valley and tying with the Salukis for last place in the conference.
• Indiana State features 14 newcomers with not a single player from last season's roster returning to Terre Haute.
• Sophomore 5-foot-6 guard Tierney Kelsey, a Jackson State transfer, leads the Sycamores in scoring (14.4 PPG).
• Junior 6-foot-1 forward Clemisha Prackett, a Mississippi Valley State transfer, leads Indiana State in rebounding (8.0 RPG) and is averaging 10.6 points per outing.
• Redshirt junior 5-foot-10 guard/forward Jayci Allen, a University of Northwestern Ohio transfer, is also averaging double-figure scoring (10.0 PPG).
• Senior 5-foot-6 guard Kennedy Claybrooks, a Southeast Missouri State transfer, leads the Sycamores in both assists (4.8 APG) and steals (1.6 SPG) and is averaging 8.5 points per contest. Her assist average is third-best in the MVC.
• Senior 5-foot-8 guard Samiyah Briggs, a Livingstone College transfer, is nearly averaging double-digit scoring (9.0 PPG).

Up Next
The Bruins close out the home portion of the regular season Monday night with Southern Illinois visiting the Curb. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. and the MVC home matchup will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
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.