MUNCIE, Ind. – Behind 50 percent shooting and outstanding defensive play, the Belmont University women's basketball team took out Ball State in the first-ever Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT) game late Thursday afternoon in Muncie, Indiana. The Bruins (26-8) hit 11 three-pointers, assisted on 17 of 26 baskets and held the host Cardinals (28-6) to 19 total made field goals inside Worthen Arena to earn their first national postseason victory since the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
 
Leading for all but 1:48 of the WBIT first round matchup, Belmont went up by as much as 24 in the fourth quarter and dominated the entire second half.
 
Ball State was the No. 4 seed in the lower right bracket of the 32-team WBIT.

Holding one of the top-35 three-point shooting teams in the nation to only four threes on 19 attempts (21.1 percent), the Bruins limited the Cardinals to 37.3 percent (19-of-51) overall. Belmont went 14-for-15 (93.3 percent) at the free-throw line and scored 19 points off 16 forced turnovers.
 
Both teams scored 30 points in the paint and the Bruins owned a slim 32-30 margin on the boards.

Belmont earned 11 steals, eight of which came in the first half, and used a 24-9 third quarter to build a double-digit lead.
 
The Bruins went 26-for-52 from the field and were 11-for-24 (45.8 percent) from beyond the arc.
 
Led by junior guard Kilyn McGuff's season-high tying 22 points and senior guard Blair Schoenwald's career-high 15 points on 5-for-6 shooting from distance, Belmont had three double-figure scorers. Redshirt junior guard Tuti Jones scored 13 and tallied a game-best five steals.

A layup from junior forward Tessa Miller gave the Bruins an early five-point lead a little over three minutes in. After Ball State trimmed it to a point, Schoenwald hit her second three to extend Belmont's lead out to six at the 3:45 mark of the opening quarter. McGuff kept the Bruins up by two possessions at 16-12 in the last minute of the first quarter, but the Cardinals got a layup before the end of the period.
 
Belmont began the game 7-for-13 from the floor and 2-for-4 from outside.

More to follow...

Up Next
The Bruins will take on top-seeded Penn State in the WBIT second round Monday evening in University Park, Pennsylvania. Tipoff from the Bryce Jordan Center is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT/6 p.m. ET.
 
How to Follow
Follow Belmont women's basketball on social media - @BelmontWBB on X, formerly Twitter, @belmontwbb on Instagram and Belmont Women's Basketball on Facebook - for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.