Belmont Basketball is headed to Tobacco Road. The Atlantic Sun Champion Bruins will face Big East Champion Georgetown in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.
The game will be played Thursday, March 15 from the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Tip-off time has yet to be determined.
Belmont (23-9) received the 15th seed in the East region. BU has won seven consecutive games – each by 15 or more points – including its 94-67 victory at East Tennessee State on March 3 to defend its Atlantic Sun Championship. Junior Justin Hare (Cleveland, Tenn.), who was named Atlantic Sun Tournament MVP for a second straight season, leads Belmont in scoring at 14.4 points per game. Senior Andrew Preston (Winchester, Ky.) and sophomore Andy Wicke (Hendersonville, Tenn.) joined Hare on the All-Tournament Team.
The Bruins led the Atlantic Sun Conference in scoring defense (64.0 ppg), field goal percentage defense (.387), three-point field goal percentage defense (.281), and scoring margin (+9.0).
As for 2nd-seeded Georgetown (26-6), the Hoyas have won 15 of their last 16 games including a resounding 65-42 victory over Pittsburgh Saturday in the Big East Championship. Georgetown is led by Big East Player of the Year and Tournament Most Outstanding Player Jeff Green, a versatile 6-9 junior forward who scored 51 points in the Hoyas’ last two victories.
Georgetown also sports 7-2 junior center Roy Hibbert, who averages 13 points and six rebounds per game.
The two teams did not have a common opponent this season. Belmont is 0-1 lifetime against the Big East Conference losing at Notre Dame to start the 2002-03 season.
Interestingly, Belmont and Georgetown each faced to teams who made it to the National Championship game last year. Belmont was a 15 seed in the 2006 NCAA Tournament, playing eventual National Runner-Up UCLA, while Georgetown was a 7 seed who lost a tight game to National Champion Florida in the Regional Semifinals.
Belmont Men To Face Georgetown
We’re Dancin’ Too! Women’s Basketball Wins Atlantic Sun Championship
The Belmont women’s basketball team’s (25-6, 16-2 A-Sun) motto all season was “One Goal: NCAA.” On Saturday, the Bruins accomplished that goal and knocked off third-seeded ETSU (20-11, 14-4 A-Sun), 69-57, in the finals of the Atlantic Sun Championship to claim their first ever conference title and advance to the NCAA Tournament.
The pace was feverish and aggressive as both teams looked to get on the board first. Freshman Shaunda Strayhorn (Dyersburg, Tenn.) put up Belmont’s first points from the charity stripe and was followed by a jumper from A-Sun All-Freshman Team selection Tereva Moore (Memphis, Tenn.). Atlantic Sun Freshman of the Year Siarre Evans nailed her first three pointer of the game to get the Lady Bucs on the board at the 18:26 mark. A trip to the free-throw line by Atlantic Sun Player of the Year sophomore Alysha Clark (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) put Belmont up, 7-3. ETSU slipped into a drought that lasted almost five minutes before TaRonda Wiles batted in the paint for a lay-up that moved the team to within two, 9-7.
Back-to-back lay-ups by Latisha Belcher knotted the score at 11 with just over eight and a half minutes remaining before the break. ETSU briefly took the lead with a jumper by Belcher but a bucket from downtown by Strayhorn put BU back on top, 16-14. Kelly Thurman was sent to the line, hitting both, to help the Lady Bucs regain the lead but sophomore Jessica Bobbitt (Trenton, Tenn.) hit a pretty spin around jumper deep in the paint to knot the game at 18 with just under five minutes left in the first half.
The teams continued the back and forth battle until the final minute of the first stanza. Bobbitt knocked down her third and fourth blocks of the half at ETSU’s end before grabbing a rebound and sending the ball down the court to set Belmont up to take the final shot of the game. Strayhorn was fouled with 20 ticks on the clock and drilled both at the line to put the Bruins ahead by three. A final shot by the Lady Bucs was wide and the teams headed into the locker rooms with Belmont up, 24-21.
Belmont finished the first half with eight blocks, just two away from tying the conference record.
Strayhorn drove to the basket with Belmont’s first possession and opened up a 9-2 run that put the Bruins up, 33-26. The Lady Bucs chipped away at the Bruins’ growing lead until they inched within three with a triple by Wiles with 13:48 remaining in the game. A three-point play by Brooke Wilhoit moved ETSU to within one but Moore hit a fall-away jumper to put Belmont back on top by three, 38-35.
Belmont blew its lead up to six, 41-35, with one of Atlantic Sun All-Freshman Team selection Amber Rockwell’s (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) trademark NBA range three pointers at the 10 minute mark. Devin Thompson made it a four point game with a pair of free throws 15 seconds later. Back-to-back jumpers by Thurman knotted the game at 41 before redshirt freshman Kristin Bunch (Fayetteville, Ga.) drilled a trey to put the Bruins back on top by one, 44-43.
With just five minutes left, BU continued to hold off the surging Lady Bucs. Clark was sent to the charity stripe three times in two minutes, hitting five of the six attempts. Clark finally was able to penetrate the paint for a lay-up without being fouled and put the Bruins up, 55-45. Belmont began to play with the clock and step up its defensive effort. With just 90 ticks left in regulation, Strayhorn nailed a monster three pointer near the top of the key to help put the game out of the Lady Bucs’ reach. A heave from deep behind the three-point arc by Wilhoit with 40 seconds left would be ETSU’s last field goal of the game. Belmont would be sent to the line four times in the last 30 seconds and go on to win the game, 69-57.
Bobbitt, Strayhorn and Clark were all named to the All-Tournament team and Clark received Most Valuable Player honors.
Belmont will await the announcement of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee on Monday night. It will mark the first time since 1999 that the men’s and women’s teams from the same school have advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
Women’s Basketball Advances To Finals in A-Sun Tournament
The Belmont women’s basketball team (24-6, 16-2 A-Sun) moved one step closing to its first ever NCAA Tournament berth on Friday night in Dothan, Ala. The top-seeded Bruins held off fourth-seeded Gardner-Webb (15-16, 10-8 A-Sun), 57-48, and advanced to the finals of the Atlantic Sun Tournament for the first time in program history.
The Bruins opened the game with a quick 5-0 with a jumper from sophomore Jessica Bobbitt (Trenton, Tenn.) and a three pointer by junior Brittany Myers (Madison, Ind.). A triple from redshirt freshman Kristin Bunch (Fayetteville, Ga.) saw Belmont go up, 8-4. Gardner-Webb began to surge with back-to-back trips to the free-throw line but the Bruins kept up their rhythm. Three consecutive blocks in the paint by Bobbitt led to redshirt freshman Amber Rockwell (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) drilling a triple to put BU up by 10, 18-8, by the 9:43 mark. A frustrated GWU bench called a timeout, attempting to put together a plan to handle the hot hands of the Bruins.
The Bulldogs moved to within five behind a three by Jenny Sprouse and a shot from Candyse Kelly with less than seven minutes left before the break. Belmont continued to pile on the points, taking advantage of a Gardner-Webb drought that lasted over three and a half minutes, until it regained its 10 point lead, 27-17, with 3:46 left on the clock. The Bulldogs’ drought was finally halted with a pair of free throws by Kelly and Brittany Boyce netted a three pointer that moved GWU to within seven, 29-22, with 68 ticks on the clock. With 35.2 seconds left, Kelly found the bottom of the net in traffic again to inch Gardner-Webb to within five, 29-24, as the teams headed to the locker rooms.
Belmont dominated in rebounds in the first stanza, 27-12, and Bobbitt racked up four blocks.
Freshman Shaunda Strayhorn (Dyersburg, Tenn.) netted the Bruins’ first five points of the second half, including a trey from the left corner, to put Belmont back on top by 10, 34-24, and a strong defensive effort from her teammates kept the Bulldogs off the scoreboard for more than six minutes. Finally, a jumper by Kelly halted the stalemate and gave GWU its first points of the half.
The Bulldogs attempted to rally behind the foul shooting of Shameka Smith, who hit four of six at the line, but Belmont continued its defensive onslaught with blocks and steals. By the nine minute mark, the Bruins had blown their lead up to 16 points, 49-33. Gardner-Webb attempted to chip away at Belmont’s lead from behind the arc, draining two triples to compliment floor shots from Smith and Sprouse. A three pointer by Boyce with only 1:32 left in regulation moved the Bulldogs to within nine, 57-48. However, the Bruins were able to use the clock to their advantage and hold on for the win with the same score.
Gardner-Webb shot a chilly 28.3 percent (15-53) from the floor, 50 percent (6-12) from three-point range and 66.7 percent (12-18) from the free-throw line. The Bulldogs also held the slim advantage in steals, 5-4.
The Bulldogs only had one player reach double figures – Boyce, who scored 11 points. Smith recorded nine points and nine rebounds.
Belmont shot 33.9 percent (19-56) from the floor, 40 percent (8-20) from beyond the three-point arc, and 78.6 percent (11-14) from the charity stripe. The Bruins dominated in boards, 48-32, blocks, 8-2, and assists, 13-8.
Strayhorn led the Bruins in scoring with a game-high 13 points. Sophomore Alysha Clark (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) picked up her 18th double-double of the season with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Bobbitt pulled down 10 rebounds in the effort. She also broke the A-Sun Tournament record for blocks in a single game with a total of eight and matched her career-high.
Belmont returns to action on Saturday afternoon in the finals of the Atlantic Sun Tournament against the winner of the two-seeded Jacksonville and three-seeded ETSU game. Tip off is slated for 1 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on CSS.
Belmont Alumna Advances to Top 12 on American Idol
Melinda Doolittle, a 1999 Belmont School of Music graduate who wowed the “American Idol” judges during her audition in Memphis, advanced to the top 12 of the hit television series. Click here for Doolittle’s official “American Idol” Web page.
MORE
“Former Boiler Room Theatre singer is ‘Idol’ ready” – The Tennessean, Friday, Feb. 17, 2007
Top-Seeded Belmont Advances to A-Sun Semifinals
Atlantic Sun Player of the Year Alysha Clark posted her league-leading 17th double-double of the season as top-seeded Belmont advanced to the A-Sun Championship semifinals with a 64-52 win over No. 8 Mercer at the Dothan Civic Center.
Belmont opened the game on an 8-0 run and looked about ready to put it into cruise control before Mercer came roaring back. The Bears scored seven straight points capped by a Megan Lewis three-pointer eight minutes into the contest. The top seed regained control with a quick 10-0 spurt highlighted by back-to-back three-pointers from Destri Bockey and Brittany Myers that left Belmont with an 11-point advantage they would continue to enjoy at halftime.
The Bruins scored the first seven points out of the locker room to double up the Bears with 17:54 left in the game. Mercer’s defense sparked a rally for the Bears as they held Belmont scoreless for over five minutes. The lead was cut to 36-30 following Sally Skeldon’s three-pointer at the 13:06 mark. The game of runs continued however as Belmont outscored Mercer 13-2, pushing the lead out to 17 points after an Alysha Clark transition basket.
Belmont advances to face the winner of No. 4 Gardner-Webb versus No. 5 Campbell.
Belmont Students Film Anti-Piracy PSA For the Motion Picture Association Of America
The Belmont University Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) chapter created a 60-second public service announcement on illegal downloading and file sharing for a SIFE contest sponsored by the Motion Picture Association Of America (MPAA). The winning video’s team will receive a $3,000 prize
Dr. John Gonas, Belmont’s SIFE chapter adviser, Belmont students Mark Ahlberg, Kurt Nelson, Tyler Seymour and Seth Jones filmed the PSA with a group of six Belmont student actors and actresses. The Belmont video focuses on the idea of “file sharing” as a harmless activity while highlightng the ehtical questions involved. The SIFE team also created a Web site, FileSharingFacts.com that contains answers to frequently asked questions about file sharing compiled by Dr. David Moser, associate professor in Belmont’s Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business.
The video can be seen on YouTube, Nashville’s ABC affiliate (WKRN Channel 2), CBS affiliate (NewsChannel5), NewsChannel5Plus and a variety of stations on Comcast cable. The winner of the competition will be announced at the national SIFE convention in April and will be used in the MPAA’s national and regional marketing.
Belmont Hosts Middle Tennessee Diversity Forum
Belmont University hosted the Middle Tennessee Diversity Forum Tuesday, March 6, for senior leaders of large organizations in Middle Tennessee who seek to benchmark their organizations’ internal diversity. Sponsors of the forum included Middle Tennessee Career Center, Gaylord, HCA, Coca-Cola, Deloitte Services, Goodwill Industries, BellSouth and Vanderbilt University.
Toni Riccardi delivered the keynote address at the forum. Riccardi is the CEO of RED, a consulting firm providing diversity and inclusion consulting, coaching and training. Riccardi is a retired partner from PricewaterhouseCoopers where she served as the company’s first Chief Diversity Officer.
Cambodia and Guatemala Get Critical Health Care From Belmont University Medical Teams
A BU Physical Therapy Graduate Team Works with Children in Guatemala City in March and a BU Nursing Team Cares for Indigent in Phnom Penh in May
This spring, in an effort to address the impending, international health care crisis, particularly in poor, developing countries, students and instructors from two of Belmont University’s Gordon E. Inman College of Health Sciences & Nursing have stepped up to provide critically-needed health care to remote parts of the third world where medical practices and professionals are frighteningly scarce, and scores of suffering people have almost nowhere to turn.
For the first time in Belmont history, 11 physical therapy graduate students and a clinical instructor have committed to spending their spring break (March 3 – 10, 2007) in the only hospital PT wing in all of Guatemala City (population 5 million plus); and for the third year in a row, a Belmont team of nursing students will care for the suffering people of Cambodia at Sihanouk Hospital Center of Hope in Phnom Penh (May 10-31, 2007).
Both the Belmont student nursing and graduate student PT teams will engage in teaching and training medical professionals in more advanced health care practices; and care for the indigent in those cities. At the same time, they’ll gain an extraordinary education in service, skills development and cultural immersion.
BU’s PT Grad Students Go to Guatemala City
At the Rehabilitation and Infectious Disease Hospital for Children (Hospital Infantil de Infectologia y Rehabilitacion) in Guatemala City, Guatemala, the Belmont PT graduates will work with: children with developmental delays as a result of having gone untreated for normal childhood diseases and trauma patients—accident victims or those whose illnesses have led to brain damage. They’ll also be teaching modern physical therapy to Guatemalan doctors and nurses.
“The PT team will not only use the skills they’ve gained at Belmont in service to others, but the education they’ll receive will be life changing,” Sheila Gaffney, adjunct PT professor and clinical instructor at Belmont, said. “And the fact that grad students are doing this is a rarity.”
BU’s Nursing Students Continue Giving Hope in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
On May 10 – 31, Belmont University will take its third team of nursing students to Sihanouk Hospital Center of Hope in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to help teach and train Cambodian medical professionals in more advanced health care practices and care for the suffering people of Cambodia—among them victims of the HIV AIDS epidemic, land mines and poverty—the residual effects of mass genocide by an extremist communist regime 30 years ago. The trip is the third of its kind since 2005 and is part of an elective, international clinical course taught by assistant professor at Belmont University’s School of Nursing, Sharon Dowdy, and Belmont alumna and clinical instructor, Susan Taplin. Taplin spent two years of residency at Sihanouk Hospital as director of nursing between 2005 and 2007.
To access the Guatemala blog between March 3-10, go to: http://forum.belmont.edu/ptmission.
To access the Cambodian images and story, click here: http://www.belmont.edu/press/pdf/pitch.AL.pdf. The Cambodia trip blog can be accessed between May 10-31, URL to be determined.
Cynthia White Named Director of Belmont University’s New Office of Sponsored Programs
Cynthia (Cindy) White has been named the Director of Belmont University’s new Office of Sponsored Programs. White comes to Belmont from Washington University in St. Louis, Mo., where she has served as Director of the Research Office, leading a staff of nine, since 1998. Washington University consistently ranks in the top lists of private and public universities in research grant funding, receiving well over $500 million annually in sponsored research funds.
“Cindy White brings exceptional ability and experience to Belmont University to help us launch our initiative to support funding for academic programs, partnerships and faculty research,” Dr. Dan McAlexander, Belmont provost, said. “With the high-caliber leadership that Cindy White will provide, the Office of Sponsored Programs will enable us to enhance our strong academic programs and to support our talented faculty and students in securing funding for a range of projects and research.”
White received the 2006 National Distinguished Service Award from the National Council of University Research Administrators, and is widely recognized as a leader in all facets of research administration in higher education. Before taking her position at Washington University, White was Assistant Director of the Division of Sponsored Research at Vanderbilt University. White received a B.A. in Sociology from Louisiana College and a M.Ed. in Higher Education Administration from Vanderbilt University.
“Belmont University offers me the opportunity to work side by side with faculty and administration to build capacity for resources for the remarkable array of academic programs, faculty research, and new initiatives the university has under way,” White said.
The Office of Sponsored Programs at Belmont University will open July 1, 2007.
Going Dancing Again!
Bruins Earn Second Consecutive NCAA Berth With 94-67 Victory Over ETSU In A-Sun Championship
The Belmont men’s basketball team earned their second consecutive NCAA Tournament berth as they captured the Atlantic Sun Championship Saturday afternoon with a 94-67 victory over No.1 seed and host ETSU. It marked the second straight year No. 2 seed Belmont defeated the No.1 seed in the championship game.
The victory for the Bruins was keyed by their shooting and rebounding. For the game they shot 50 percent, 48 percent from behind the three-point arc. They also outrebounded the Bucs 53-33.
Belmont jumped out to an early double digit lead mainly due to their remarkable shooting in the first half. They shot 53 percent in the first half and a staggering 63 percent (12-19) from three point range. At halftime, the Bruins led 49-30 after Justin Hare’s running three-pointer at the buzzer.
In the second half, Belmont’s shooting cooled off, but the Bucs could not capitalize as the Bruins responded to every ETSU scoring run. The closest the Bucs came was 14 points, but could not get any closer.
Belmont had four players in double figures. They were led in scoring by Andrew Preston and Andy Wicke who led the team with 18 points. Preston added a team-high 10 rebounds. Justin Hare added 17, while Boomer Herndon added 10 points.
ETSU was led by Courtney Pigram who had 21 points in the loss.
Three Bruins were named to the All-Tournament team: Andy Wicke, Andrew Preston and Justin Hare, who was named MVP.
For complete coverage of Belmont’s road to the NCAA Championship Tournament, visit BelmontBruins.com.
MORE
“Another Dance For Belmont” – The Tennessean, March 4, 2007
“Belmont dances back into NCAA tournament” – Nashville City Paper, March 4, 2007
“Byrd approaches NCAA different this time” – Nashville City Paper, March 5, 2007
