KNOXVILLE – A visit to the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame drove home to the Belmont Bruins what the Tennessee Lady Volunteers mean to the sport, especially in March.
The chance for Belmont’s first Sweet 16 appearance makes it much easier to focus on the task at hand rather than the opponent’s history.
“I know we’re not going to be scared of these guys,” Belmont coach Bart Brooks said of his Ohio Valley Conference champions from Nashville. “We’re going to come out and come out swinging.”
The 12th-seeded Bruins (23-7) visit fourth-seeded Tennessee (24-8) of the Southeastern Conference in an NCAA tournament second-round matchup at 7 p.m. Monday on ESPN. The winner of the in-state showdown will play top-seeded Louisville – a 68-59 winner Sunday night over Gonzaga – on Saturday in Wichita, Kansas.
Belmont comes in confident after winning its second straight NCAA tournament opener Saturday night, knocking off fifth-seeded Oregon in double overtime. The former NAIA program that is leaving the OVC for the Missouri Valley Conference this summer 1 is 2-6 all-time in the NCAA tourney.