(NASHVILLE) – The Murray State women’s basketball team showcased their championship pedigree Saturday night, overcoming a halftime deficit to defeat Belmont 78-71 at Curb Event Center and improve to 19-3 overall and 10-1 in Missouri Valley Conference play.
Three Racers scored in double figures, led by junior guard Halli Poock’s game-high 23 points on an efficient 7-of-16 shooting. Poock also knocked down a pair of crucial three-pointers and converted 7-of-9 free throws in the clutch.
“Our determination and toughness were huge factors on the road against a really good Belmont team,” said head coach Rechelle Turner. “We showed great resilience coming back in the second half, playing with perfect effort.”
Haven Ford and Sharnecce Currie-Jelks each added 17 points, with Ford pulling down a team-high 14 rebounds for an impressive double-double. Keslyn Secrist chipped in 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting while providing steady leadership at the point.
The game featured 12 ties and 14 lead changes, with neither team able to pull away in a tightly contested first half. Murray State trailed 33-31 at the break after Belmont’s Sanaa Tripp hit a jumper at the buzzer.
The Racers seized control in the third quarter, outscoring the Bruins 24-22 behind a balanced attack. Murray State shot 62.5 percent from the floor in the period, including 4-of-7 from three-point range, to take a 55-53 lead into the final frame.
In the fourth quarter, the Racers pulled away by dominating at the free-throw line, converting 9-of-12 attempts while maintaining their defensive intensity. Currie-Jelks was particularly effective in the paint, scoring multiple key baskets down the stretch to keep Belmont at bay.
Murray State’s defense forced eight turnovers and limited Belmont to just 38.5 percent shooting in the fourth quarter. The Racers also won the rebounding battle 43-31, with 13 offensive boards leading to 16 second-chance points.
Hilary Fuller led Belmont (12-9, 8-2 MVC) with 20 points, while Avery Strickland added 18 points and seven rebounds in the losing effort.
The victory increases Murray State’s first place advantage to 1.5 games atop the MVC standings as they continue their pursuit of back-to-back conference championships. The Racers will play Indiana State at the Hulman Center in Terre Haute on Thursday at 6 p.m.
The Racers finished the game shooting 42.2 percent from the field and an impressive 80.0 percent from the free-throw line, making 16 of 20 attempts from the charity stripe. Murray State’s bench contributed eight points in the winning effort. The Racers also won the turnover battle, forcing 14 Belmont miscues while committing just 12 of their own. A crowd of 1,427 fans at Curb Event Center witnessed the hard-fought Missouri Valley Conference matchup.
