Late rally lifts Belmont past Jacksonville St. 63-59
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- — Caleb Hollander had 18 points and eight rebounds as Belmont extended its winning streak to 20 games, narrowly beating Jacksonville State 63-59 on Thursday night.
The win gave Belmont a three-game lead over Morehead State in the Ohio Valley Conference with three games to go, assuring the Bruins at least a tie for their 12th regular-season title in the last 16 years.
Nick Muszynski had 16 points and three blocks for Belmont (23-1, 17-0). Grayson Murphy added nine points and nine rebounds.
Luke Smith, the Bruins’ second leading scorer (13.0 ppg) points per game, scored seven points in 1 of 9 shooting, 1of 8 from distance. Smith made four free throws in the last 13 seconds, each time extending the Bruins late lead to two possessions.
Belmont scored a season-low 22 first-half points as Jacksonville State led 27-22 at the break. The Gamecocks held a lead until Hollander hit a jumper, was fouled and converted the three-point play putting Belmont in front 55-53 with 3:26 remaining.
Darian Adams scored a career-high 24 points and had eight rebounds for the Gamecocks (14-8, 10-6), whose four-game win streak ended with the loss. Jalen Finch added nine points and seven assists.
Belmont defeated Jacksonville State 98-91 on Jan. 16.
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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com
Game Information
- Referees:
- Andrew Walton
- John St. Clair
- Chris Hudson
2023-24 Conference USA Standings
Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
---|---|---|---|
Sam Houston | 13-3 | - | 21-12 |
Louisiana Tech | 12-4 | 1 | 22-10 |
Western Kentucky | 8-8 | 5 | 22-12 |
Liberty | 7-9 | 6 | 18-14 |
UTEP | 7-9 | 6 | 18-16 |
Middle Tennessee | 7-9 | 6 | 14-19 |
New Mexico State | 7-9 | 6 | 13-19 |
Jacksonville State | 6-10 | 7 | 14-18 |
Florida International | 5-11 | 8 | 11-22 |
2023-24 Missouri Valley Conference Standings
Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
---|---|---|---|
Indiana State | 17-3 | - | 32-7 |
Drake | 16-4 | 1 | 28-7 |
Bradley | 13-7 | 4 | 23-12 |
Belmont | 12-8 | 5 | 20-13 |
Northern Iowa | 12-8 | 5 | 19-14 |
Southern Illinois | 11-9 | 6 | 19-13 |
Illinois State | 9-11 | 8 | 15-17 |
Murray State | 9-11 | 8 | 12-20 |
Missouri State | 8-12 | 9 | 17-16 |
Evansville | 6-14 | 11 | 17-18 |
UIC | 4-16 | 13 | 12-21 |
Valparaiso | 3-17 | 14 | 7-25 |