#basketball

Mar 16, 2022
4 min

Nashville rival Vanderbilt ends Belmont MBB season at NIT

Thanks to the National Invitational Tournament, Belmont University and Vanderbilt University continued their postseason play in hometown rivalry fashion Tuesday night. With both teams’ seasons at stake, tensions were high in Vanderbilt’s Memorial Gymnasium. Vanderbilt out-rebounded the Bruins to win 82-71 and will continue to the second round of the NIT, while the Belmont men head home until next season. Tuesday’s contest marked the first time since November 2017 the neighbor

OPINION: The women’s basketball team deserves more respect from the Belmont student body

AJ Wuest

Feb 24, 2022
4 min

OPINION: The women’s basketball team deserves more respect from the Belmont student body

After the Belmont University men’s basketball team defeated the University of Tennessee Martin in a late January game, the stands emptied with haste, leaving only a few faithful fans behind. The Curb Event Center was lifeless and cold by comparison as another team began its pregame warmup. This team made history bringing in a first-round win in the NCAA tournament. With an accomplishment like that in the books, students must have been jumping up and down in blue and red to ch

Events, events and more events: Here’s what’s in store for Homecoming Week 2022

Lilly Owens

Feb 20, 2022
3 min

Events, events and more events: Here’s what’s in store for Homecoming Week 2022

Full speed ahead for Belmont’s 2022 homecoming, which kicks off Monday with festivities that will carry on throughout the week. This year, campus will be booming once more with WELL Core events, free swag and opportunities to show school spirit leading up to a basketball doubleheader against Tennessee State University on Saturday. For a full schedule of events, speakers, chapels, panels and more, visit Belmont’s homecoming page. In the meantime, here are some helpful highligh

Men’s basketball grabs crucial win, chasing Morehead State down to the wire

Landen Secrest

Feb 12, 2022
4 min

Men’s basketball grabs crucial win, chasing Morehead State down to the wire

Facing a must-win situation in order to stay alive in the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season race, Belmont edged out Morehead State 48-47 to capture its No. 2 rank. After falling short in the previous three contests with the Eagles, including last year’s OVC Championship game, the Bruins sought revenge Thursday night, extending their win streak to seven games. “Anytime you’ve got the reigning champs coming to your home court, you’ve got to defend it,” graduate student guar

Behind the Bruin: Kingston Gardner plays hard and cheers loud for Belmont sports

Landen Secrest

Feb 1, 2022
3 min

Behind the Bruin: Kingston Gardner plays hard and cheers loud for Belmont sports

Belmont University’s love of sports runs far deeper than its 15 Division I athletics teams. Just ask Kingston Gardner, a creative and entertainment industries sophomore and Nashville native who’s been playing sports since he could walk. Though he’s not a student-athlete, sports are a big part of Gardner’s life. And whether it’s watching games or playing in them, sports-loving Bruins like Gardner find ways to get involved in Belmont’s passionate athletic community. “There’s n

For Brooks, basketball is a family affair

Jessica Mattsson

Jan 27, 2022
4 min

For Brooks, basketball is a family affair

Bart Brooks loves basketball now more than ever. “The more I’m in it, the more I’m around it, the more I learn about it, the more I study it, the more I coach it, the more I love it,” he said. “It’s just like my beautiful wife, the same way. I love her more now than I did 10 years ago.” The women’s head coach has been all about the sport since picking up a ball at second-grade recess. At that moment, he found the first love of his life, which he followed all the way to a coll

Narrow loss to Tennessee Tech, Bruins remain No. 1 in OVC

Sarah Maninger

Jan 22, 2022
3 min

Narrow loss to Tennessee Tech, Bruins remain No. 1 in OVC

This week’s winter storms brought rain, sleet, snow and a warmed-up Tennessee Tech team ready to face off against the No. 1 ranked Bruins. Belmont women’s basketball took on the Golden Eagles Saturday in the Curb Event Center, but despite the home-court advantage, the visitors from Cookeville, Tennessee, won out 57-55. The win for the Golden Eagles moves them from fourth to third place in the Ohio Valley Conference, but Belmont still remains on top. Tech led Belmont for most

Senior Spotlight: Nick Muszynski passes his way to prestige

Camden Morris

Jan 21, 2022
3 min

Senior Spotlight: Nick Muszynski passes his way to prestige

Men’s basketball’s last season in the Ohio Valley Conference is underway with high stakes and heavy expectations on the Bruins’ shoulders. A pair of shoulders that stand out in most crowds belongs to center Nick “Moose” Muszynski. The senior and his 6’ 11” frame have been a valuable asset to the team since he started playing for Belmont as a redshirt freshman in 2018. Over his four years at Belmont, the campus has become his home and the team his family. Muszynski is living t

Belmont’s biggest little fans celebrate their birthdays with basketball

Gus Sneh

Jan 18, 2022
2 min

Belmont’s biggest little fans celebrate their birthdays with basketball

For Ivey Unland’s ninth birthday, she knew the Curb Event Center was the place to be. As fans cheered and players celebrated their victories on the court, not only did Unland watch the Bruins sweep the Bisons at the Dec. 2 Battle of the Boulevard, but the birthday girl got a standing ovation from the crowd for her special day. Belmont’s basketball birthday experience organizes an unforgettable day for the team’s youngest fans, and perhaps inspires some future Bruin recruits a

Women ascend to OVC’s No. 1 while men fall hard at Saturday’s doubleheader against Murray Stat

AJ Wuest

Jan 16, 2022
4 min

Women ascend to OVC’s No. 1 while men fall hard at Saturday’s doubleheader against Murray Stat

The women’s basketball team rose to the occasion while the men failed to execute against Ohio Valley Conference rival Murray State University. Distance shooting was the name of the game for the women, who downed 10 3-pointers to bring home a 67-52 victory in the Curb Event Center on Saturday. The men followed in poorer form, shooting an inefficient 3-point percentage of 21.7% as the Racers upset the Bruins’ eight-game winning streak 82-60. Bartley leads the charge for the wom

Senior Spotlight: Jamilyn Kinney is sticking with her sport to the end

Jessica Mattsson

Dec 9, 2021
4 min

Senior Spotlight: Jamilyn Kinney is sticking with her sport to the end

Jamilyn Kinney’s past, present and future is basketball. And her lifelong dedication to the sport is taking her places. Collecting All-Ohio Valley Conference honors since her sophomore year with the Belmont Bruins and playing a crucial role through the women’s basketball team’s road to the 2019 and 2021 NCAA Tournaments, the senior guard has achieved a lot throughout her athletic career. “Looking back at it now, it’s like, how the heck did I get here?” Kinney said. In Van Bu

Freshman Kwesi Mensah downs half-court basket for free tuition

AJ Wuest

Dec 3, 2021
2 min

Freshman Kwesi Mensah downs half-court basket for free tuition

It was the shot of a lifetime. And it went in — nothing but net. Belmont freshman Paa Kwesi Mensah did the unthinkable Thursday night in the Curb Event Center and made the infamous half-court shot to get his next semester’s tuition paid in full. The feat has not been accomplished since Jan. 21, 2018, but Mensah ended the drought at the Belmont men’s game against Lipscomb University. The biology freshman drew inspiration from the great Michael Jordan, he said. “I watched ‘The

Battling for Boulevard bragging rights: A look at the Belmont, Lipscomb rivalry

Sarah Maninger

Dec 3, 2021
3 min

Battling for Boulevard bragging rights: A look at the Belmont, Lipscomb rivalry

Just 1.7 miles. A short walk, and an even faster drive, but it’s a distance that carries 68 years of rivalry between the schools at either end of the journey down Belmont Boulevard. Belmont University and Lipscomb University first met on the basketball court in 1953 and have been battling for bragging rights on the Boulevard ever since. The two schools have met 148 times over the series’ history, with Lipscomb leading by a razor-thin margin of 75 wins to the Bruins’ 73 across

After two tournament wins, Belmont basketball falls to Dayton in the 2021 ESPN Events Invitational f

AJ Wuest

Nov 30, 2021
3 min

After two tournament wins, Belmont basketball falls to Dayton in the 2021 ESPN Events Invitational f

Following two victories that propelled them to the final game, the Belmont men came up short in a nail-biting 63-61 loss to the University of Dayton at the ESPN Events Invitational Championship Sunday night. Belmont, alongside seven schools including the University of Alabama, University of Kansas and University of North Texas, competed in the annual basketball tournament at Walt Disney World Resort, which took place over Thanksgiving weekend. “Quality of opponents, three gam

Jordan Shatto

Nov 30, 2021
1 min

Vision News Network: November 2021

This month’s VNN includes coverage on an important Inauguration Week event, behind the scenes of Belmont’s production of The Diviners and the return of First on the Floor. – This video was posted by Jordan Shatto. #november2021 #TheDiviners #firstonthefloor #diviners #BelmontAthletics202122 #basketball #vnn #VisionNewsNetowrk #november #NMAAM

Recap: Bruins struggle to find the net in LSU away game

Landen Secrest

Nov 24, 2021
2 min

Recap: Bruins struggle to find the net in LSU away game

Belmont’s three-game winning streak came to a close Thursday after the men’s basketball fell short to Louisiana State University on the road. The contest closed up at 83-53 in favor of the Tigers — a high-profile opponent on Belmont’s 2021-22 schedule. The Bruins missed scoring opportunities and fell behind in points from turnovers at the Baton Rouge contest, and the team struggled with an inefficient shooting percentage of 32.3% from the floor and 25.6% from 3-point distance

Belmont basketball architect Rick Byrd named to National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame

Jessica Mattsson

Nov 23, 2021
3 min

Belmont basketball architect Rick Byrd named to National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame

It’s official: Former Belmont men’s basketball head coach Rick Byrd is an NCAA legend after his National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame induction Sunday. “I am overwhelmed, humbled, and feel a great sense of gratitude to receive this ultimate recognition for those in our profession,” Byrd said in a statement to Belmont Athletics. Posting a .797 winning percentage in conference play, Byrd ranks second all-time among Division 1 coaches in that category, leading the Bruins t

Women’s basketball opens at home with a resounding win grounded by strong defense

AJ Wuest

Nov 19, 2021
3 min

Women’s basketball opens at home with a resounding win grounded by strong defense

After a slow start to its first home game of the season, Belmont’s women’s basketball team rose to the occasion to secure a 63-34 victory over Alabama A&M University on Thursday. “It’s great to be home. We did the math and with two scrimmages, we’ve played 13 games since our last home game so I forgot what our white jerseys looked like,” said head coach Bart Brooks. “It was great to be in front of our people, our fans, and I thought we had a good student crowd out tonight.” I

Men’s basketball launches epic comeback at home with overtime win against Furman

Landen Secrest

Nov 16, 2021
3 min

Men’s basketball launches epic comeback at home with overtime win against Furman

In an intense battle rescued by some late-game heroics, Belmont secured a 95-89 overtime victory at Monday’s match against Furman University. The Bruins’ second home game of the season had the Curb Event Center charged with adrenaline as they battled one of mid-major basketball’s stand-out teams. “It was two great teams that are gonna win a lot of games,” said Belmont head coach Casey Alexander. “It had to be fun for everyone to watch and be a part of.” The Furman Paladins, p

Belmont Athletics welcomes Steve Layman to the broadcast team

Jessica Mattsson

Nov 11, 2021
2 min

Belmont Athletics welcomes Steve Layman to the broadcast team

When Belmont men’s basketball broadcasts its first home game of the season Saturday, there will be a new voice calling the play-by-plays. Belmont announced Thursday that NewsChannel 5 Nasvhille’s Steve Layman would replace current lead broadcaster John Freeman, who was hired in early August but revealed Monday he would be leaving for his alma mater, University of Virginia, before the start of the Bruins’ season. “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to call Belmont basketbal