Belmont men’s basketball defeated the Bradley Braves 80-77 Wednesday night.
Both Belmont and Bradley came into the contest on two-game losing streaks with a win being crucial for both in the conference standings.
The Bruins were short-staffed in this contest, with two players and three coaches unavailable due to injury and illness.
Junior forward Tyler Lundblade led the way for Belmont having 25 points and eight 3-pointers, six of those coming in the second half.
Braves forward Almar Atlason led all scorers with 28 and was the main reason this game came down to the final seconds.
A steal and transition finish from Atlason brought the Braves within five with a little over a minute to go in the game.
Senior forward Jonathan Pierre delivered in the biggest moment, scoring and getting fouled on a layup with 2.1 seconds left to ultimately seal the game for the Bruins.
“To come out here and show the type of willpower we have in this team, that’s a good win for us, especially getting close to March Madness. It was a really good feeling to pull that one out,” said Pierre.
The shooting talent was on display for both teams, as they combined for 29 made 3-pointers.
Winning the turnover battle was pivotal to Belmont’s success, nearly halving Bradley’s total with 17 to 9.
Belmont still holds the No. 4 spot in the Missouri Valley Conference, but it positioned themselves just one game behind Bradley at second.
Belmont holds a 15-8 overall record and an 8-5 conference record with a chance to improve both on Saturday back at home against Missouri State.
-
This article was written by Austin Embry
Comentários