Belmont men’s basketball took home the win against in-state rival, Middle Tennessee State University 82-79 on Saturday.
The game began with graduate guard Carter Whitt making multiple layups to give Belmont an early lead.
Junior guard Isaiah Walker and freshman forward Drew Scharnowski rebounded a combined 13 times throughout the game.
Walker was assertive under the hoop and Scharnowski gained confidence throughout the game.
Both teams struggled with turning over the ball, resulting in fast breaks for both sides.
On Belmont’s side, Walker led fast breaks and continued to increase the Bruins lead.
The game was physical, resulting in eight fouls for the Blue Raiders and five for the Bruins.
Middle Tennessee State closed the gap and took the lead with 5 minutes left in the first
half through multiple turnovers from the Bruins.
The Bruins led the Blue Raiders 38-30 at half.
The second half started with three consecutive layups from Walker and Whitt. Walker continued to have rebounds, setting the Bruins up for success.
Belmont led 56-38 with 13 minutes left in the half.
The Bruins’s lead slowly crumbled with a 15-4 run by the Blue Raiders.
Defense from the Blue Raiders began to challenge the Bruins and led to a one-point game with 5 minutes left to play.
Belmont began to regain their stride, passing around MTSU as the game remained aggressive.
The Bruins led 76-73 with 1 minute left in the game.
The crowd was electric, making every effort to assist the Bruins.
With 20 seconds left in the game, Belmont led Middle Tennessee State 78-75.
Blue Raiders guard Jlynn Counter had an opportunity for two free-throws, making one and missing the other, putting the score at 78-76.
Whitt then had the same opportunity and made both free-throws.
Middle Tennessee State guard Jestin Porter made a three-pointer to bring the game to 80-79 with 4.5 seconds left.
Whitt made another two free-throws, and a counter missed buzzer beater left the game 82-79, giving Belmont its fourth consecutive win.
“I’m really proud of our team for finding a way to win some games. We still are a long way off I think from where we can be, but we saw glimpses of it tonight,” said head coach Casey Alexander.
The Bruins have the week off to prepare to travel to the University of Richmond on Dec. 14.
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This article was written by Greer Patten
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