BOX SCORE 

Final Score: Tennessee State 59 - Belmont 84
Records: TSU (15-14, 10-8 OVC) – Belmont (23-8, 15-3 OVC)
Venue: Curb Event Center
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Attendance 5,074

NASHVILLE --- The Tennessee State men's basketball team was handed an 84-59 defeat at Belmont on Saturday in the regular season finale at the Curb Event Center. Delano Spencer scored a team-high 23 points for the Tigers.

Belmont (23-8, 15-3 OVC) shot 20-of-38 from three-point range on the night.

Kamar McKnight also scored in double figures for the Tigers (15-14, 10-8 OVC), who will be seeded sixth for the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament and face seventh-seeded Eastern Illinois in the first round on Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 8:30 p.m. at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• TSU LEADERS
  • POINTS – Delano Spencer - 23
  • REBOUNDS – Christian Mekowulu - 8
  • ASSISTS – Delano Spencer, Darreon Reddick, Christian Mekowulu and Tripp Davis – 2

Delano Spencer reached double figures in the first half. It was his 25th time reaching double digits this season and the 36th time in his two-year TSU career. It was the seventh time Spencer has scored 20 or more points in a game this season.

Kamar McKnight scored in double digits for the 14th time this season.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Delano Spencer scored five early points to get TSU's offense going as the Tigers trailed Belmont, 9-7, five minutes into the game.
• Hot shooting from the Bruins stretched the home side's lead to 40-21 before a 7-0 run got the Tigers within 12 points at 40-28.
• Austin Luke's desperation three-quarter court heave went in to give the Bruins a 43-28 halftime edge.
• Belmont's strong shooting performance continued into the second half as the Bruins stretched the lead up to 70-40 with nine minutes to go.
• TSU would get to within 22 points but would get no closer down the stretch. 

GAME NOTES

• TSU is now 12-18 in the all-time series versus Belmont.
• The Tigers defeated Belmont in the earlier meeting between the two sides by a 64-56 margin on Feb. 8 at the Gentry Center.

QUOTES

HEAD COACH DANA FORD

"Just a tough night for us on both sides of the floor. I think they made around 20 threes, which is hard for us to overcome. Offensively, we were a little bit out of sync. We didn't play our normal game. We didn't finish around the basket. I didn't think we were as aggressive as you need to be against a team that defends like Belmont does. Tough night, but just have to put it behind us."
- Thoughts on the game

"Part of our game plan is to let them shoot threes. I mean, not let them shoot, but we're rather have them shoot a three than a layup. They're either going to shoot a three or a layup, and we don't want them to shoot a layup. They make those at about a 65 percent clip, and they make the three at about a 37. You don't want them to make 20, but if you can keep that number down a little lower than 20 and keep them off the free throw line, you've normally got a chance. Tonight they made 20. They're going to beat everybody in this building when they make 20."
- On Belmont's three-point shooting

UP NEXT

• TSU will play in the first round of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament on Wednesday, Feb. 28, at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind.
• The sixth-seeded Tigers will take on seventh-seeded EIU at 8:30 p.m. 

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