Women’s Basketball Welcomes Lipscomb for 79th Battle of the Boulevard Wednesday

 
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – After playing three of its first four games of the season on the road, the Belmont University women's basketball team returns to the Music City to face nearby rival Lipscomb in the 79th Battle of the Boulevard. Tipoff from inside the Curb Event Center is scheduled for 5 p.m. with the game serving as the first act of a doubleheader. Men's basketball's Battle of the Boulevard tilt with the Bisons will follow at 7:30 p.m.
 
The rivalry matchup will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Dr. Rich Tiner (play-by-play) and former Bruin guard Jenny Roy Bream ('19) (analyst) on the call. The Battle of the Boulevard can also be heard on Belmont Bruins Radio, available online. Live stats of Wednesday's late afternoon contest can be followed by visiting BelmontBruins.com.
 
The Battle of the Boulevard doubleheader, presented by Elite Sports Medicine + Orthopedics, is a white out. Free Battle of the Boulevard white t-shirts will be located at each seat in the arena.
 
What's Bruin

• The Bruins (2-2) are coming off a gritty, 72-66 road victory at Atlantic 10 Conference member Dayton Sunday afternoon.
• Earning its first road win of the season, Belmont improved to 4-2 all-time versus A-10 opponents.
• On Friday, Nov. 7, the Bruins defeated Brown 83-61 in their home opener.
• Ninth-year program leader Bart Brooks secured his 200th career victory with Belmont's win over the Flyers Sunday. He reached the career milestone in only 270 games as a head coach.
• Two of the Bruins' first four games were against top-15 Southeastern Conference opponents on the road. Belmont took on sixth-ranked Oklahoma in the season opener and challenged 12th-ranked Tennessee last Thursday night in Knoxville.
• 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 Missouri Valley Conference. 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 – graduate guard Tuti Jones, junior guard Jailyn Banks and senior guard Emily La Chapell – in addition to graduate transfer guard Avery 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 return eight total letter winners and feature seven newcomers, 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

• Belmont led from nearly the opening tip at Dayton, scoring only five seconds into the contest and building a 12-point lead early in the second half. However, the Flyers got within a point twice in the fourth quarter before key baskets from Jones and Banks propelled the Bruins past Dayton late.
• Banks scored 16 of her season-high 21 points in the fourth quarter as Belmont went 3-for-6 from long range in the final period. Banks closed out the game by going 6-for-6 at the free-throw line in the last minute.
• In addition to grabbing a season-high nine rebounds, Jones created separation for the Bruins with five-and-a-half minutes to go when she followed her shot and scored on an offensive rebound.
• Banks provided several big buckets in the final five minutes, including hitting a put away three-pointer to give Belmont a 64-56 lead.
• Sophomore forward Hilary Fuller scored 14 points on a career-best 7-for-11 shooting, while Brodie went 4-for-5 from the field for a season-high eight points.
• The Bruins got 22 points off the bench led by senior guard Emily La Chapell's 12 points on 4-for-8 shooting, which included her going 2-for-4 from beyond the arc.
• Belmont committed a season-low 11 turnovers while turning the Flyers over 24 times.
• The Bruins overcame a 12-rebound deficit the glass (42-30).

Double-Figure Scorers

• Both Banks and Fuller have scored in double figures in all four games this season.
• Banks has scored in double figures for six consecutive games going back to last season. 

Battle of the Boulevard History

• Belmont is 52-26 all-time versus rival Lipscomb and the Bruins own a commanding 29-9 lead in the series since joining the NCAA ranks (1996-97).
• Belmont has won the last 15 Battle of the Boulevard games dating back to January of 2011.
• The Bisons haven't defeated the Bruins since Jan. 27, 2011, a 73-59 affair at the opposite end of Belmont Boulevard.
• Belmont is 14-2 against Lipscomb inside the Curb. The Bisons haven't won in the Curb since Jan. 12, 2009.
• The two teams first met during the 1979-80 season, a 77-65 win for the Bruins.
• Belmont and Lipscomb were conference adversaries in the Atlantic Sun Conference for nine seasons from 2003-12.
• Coach Brooks is a perfect 7-0 versus the Bisons.
• The Nov. 19 date is the earliest the two teams have played each other since 2013 (Nov. 14).
• Early last December, the Bruins defeated Lipscomb 63-55 on the other end of Belmont Boulevard. Belmont led by as much as 14 in the first half before the Bisons climbed back within a point twice in the fourth quarter. Senior forward Kendal Cheesman made a pair of clutch three-pointers in the final quarter and both Banks and La Chapell delivered late with driving layups. Lipscomb outscored the Bruins 32-29 in the second half behind 52.2 percent shooting. Jones scored 13 points and distributed five assists, while La Chapell finished with 10 points and five rebounds. Banks dished out a game-high six assists to go along with six boards and nine points.
• Belmont routed the Bisons 70-51 in their last visit to the Curb on Dec. 6, 2023. The Bruins shot 52 percent from the field and outscored Lipscomb 19-5 in the fourth quarter.

A Winning Program

• In its 58th season as a program, Belmont has claimed the 15th-most victories in NCAA Division I women's basketball (1,111).
• 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 189-40 (.825) record in conference play.
• Altogether, including conference tournaments, the Bruins have gone 215-47 (.821) against league opponents across the last 13 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 200-70 record. His 74.1 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 129-20 (.866) 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 146-24 (.859) 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 92-19 (.829).
• 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 and this season is no different.
• At least six of Belmont's 11 non-conference opponents are 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 take on a trio of top-25 teams, including hosting No. 20/18 Kentucky (Dec. 14) after traveling to both No. 6/6 Oklahoma (Nov. 3) and No. 12/12 Tennessee (Nov. 13). Belmont also hosts receiving-votes/No. 24 Duke (Dec. 20) before Christmas.
• The Bruins face no fewer than six NCAA Tournament teams from a season ago during their non-conference slate – Oklahoma, Tennessee, Ohio State, Princeton, Kentucky and Duke. 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.
• Playing in the 2025 Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship in Nassau, Bahamas, during Thanksgiving week, Belmont may also see West Virginia, who is ranked 23rd in the AP Top 25 and 22nd in the USA TODAY Sports/WBCA poll and reached the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament last March.

Mid-Major Rankings

• The Bruins are ranked 11th in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll and are 10th in the SB Nation Mid-Major Madness Other Top 25 rankings.

At the Curb

• Belmont is 115-17 (.871) at home since the start of the 2015-16 season.
• The Bruins have a home winning percentage of .753 (213-70) inside the Curb since the arena opened prior to the 2003-04 season.
• Under coach Brooks, Belmont is an exceptional 91-16 (.850) at the Curb.
• In conference play, the Bruins have been even more dominant at home, going 100-14 (.877) since 2012. In his first eight seasons, coach Brooks lost only eight league games at the Curb with a 66-8 (.892) record.
• For four-straight seasons and nine of the last 10, Belmont has won 10 or more games at the Curb.

About the Bisons

• The Bisons (2-3) are coming off a 72-68 Sunday loss at Mississippi Valley State.
• Lipscomb has not beaten a Division I team yet this season with its two wins being home victories over Division III Sewanee (105-46) and NAIA Johnson University (74-49) last Thursday night.
• The Bisons have also suffered losses to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (59-56) at home and Indiana (80-46) on the road.
• Lipscomb was picked third by the media and fourth by the league's head coaches in the ASUN Preseason Polls. Last season, the Bisons finished third in the ASUN with a 12-6 conference mark and a 20-12 overall record. After reaching the semifinals of the ASUN Tournament, Lipscomb earned an at-large bid to the 2025 WNIT.
• Senior 6-foot guard Molly Heard was tabbed Preseason All-ASUN and leads the Bisons in scoring (14.4 PPG) through five games.
• Sophomore 6-foot-1 guard Hannah Richardson is also averaging double-figure scoring through five games (11.0 PPG).
• Senior 6-foot guard Taylor Bowen leads the team in rebounding (9.2 RPG), while junior 5-foot-5 guard Elena Bertrand leads Lipscomb in assists (2.8 APG).

Up Next
The Bruins head to the Bahamas next week for the Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship in Nassau. In the Goombay Division, Belmont will take on receiving-votes Ohio State in the opening game Monday morning at 10 a.m. CT/11 a.m. ET. Next Wednesday, the Bruins will face either top-25 West Virginia or McNeese State. The winner of Monday's game will play at 12:30 p.m. CT/1:30 p.m. ET Wednesday afternoon in the Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship Goombay Division championship game, while the consolation game is scheduled for 10 a.m. CT/11 a.m. ET Wednesday. Both games will be played inside the Baha Mar Convention, Arts & Entertainment Center and will be broadcast live on FloHoops (a subscription is required).
 
Season Tickets
Season tickets, which include all Belmont women's and men's basketball home games, are on sale now and can be purchased by visiting BelmontBruins.com/Tickets or calling 615-460-BALL. Flex pack plans for the 2025-26 season are also on sale and can be purchased here.
 
How to Follow
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