Middle Tennessee Raiders (26-8, 18-3 CUSA) at Belmont Bruins (22-12, 17-6 MVC)
Nashville, Tennessee; Thursday, 7:30 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Middle Tennessee faces Belmont after Ta’Mia Scott scored 23 points in Middle Tennessee’s 53-48 loss to the Liberty Lady Flames.
Belmont is fourth in the MVC with 24.8 defensive rebounds per game led by Kendal Cheesman averaging 6.7.
Middle Tennessee is 22-6 in games decided by at least 10 points.
Belmont makes 42.7% of its shots from the field this season, which is 10.3 percentage points higher than Middle Tennessee has allowed to its opponents (32.4%). Middle Tennessee averages 6.1 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.2 fewer makes per game than Belmont gives up.
The teams meet for the second time this season. Belmont won 65-52 in the last matchup on Dec. 7. Emily La Chapell led Belmont with 26 points, and Jalynn Gregory led Middle Tennessee with 15 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jailyn Banks is averaging 12.5 points and 3.3 assists for the Bruins. Cheesman is averaging 13.2 points and 10.6 rebounds over the past 10 games.
Gregory is shooting 36.8% from beyond the arc with 2.7 made 3-pointers per game for the Raiders, while averaging 13.3 points and 1.9 steals. Scott is averaging 17 points and 5.9 rebounds over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Bruins: 6-4, averaging 73.1 points, 35.6 rebounds, 12.6 assists, 7.0 steals and 2.6 blocks per game while shooting 43.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 65.4 points per game.
Raiders: 8-2, averaging 60.6 points, 29.7 rebounds, 11.8 assists, 7.1 steals and 6.5 blocks per game while shooting 42.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 49.8 points.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Copyright © 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
