EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WTVF) — OVC Player of the Year Ja Morant looked the part, outdueling Belmont star Dylan Windler in a classic championship game that saw the Racers win 77-65 to become the first league team to repeat as tournament champs in 20 years.
Morant scored a game-high 36 points, including a driving layup that put Murray State in front for good with 3:30 to play. The Racers closed the game on a 15-2 run after a Windler bucket gave Belmont its first lead since early in the second half at 63-62.
Windler finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds after being held to just two points in the first half. He traded buckets with Morant for large chunks of the second half as the Bruins tried to rally.
Belmont was also forced to play without Freshman of the Year Nick Muszynski who suffered a sprained ankle in Friday’s semifinal win, yet still took a 31-26 lead to the break.
But Morant scored 22 in the second half to help Murray take the lead and then finish it off in a high-level game that you would expect of the league’s two regular season co-champions.
The victory secures the league’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament for the Racers, who now stand 27-4 on the year.
Belmont is now 26-5 after having its 14-game winning streak snapped that included a double digit win at Murray State in the regular season.
The Bruins entered Saturday 41st in the NCAA’s new NET rankings, which very much is on the tournament’s at-large bubble. Anyone watching Saturday night saw what looked like a tourney team.
Belmont Head Coach Rick Byrd says he will not campaign the selection committee about his team. But when asked what he hopes the committee would see about his team, Byrd pointed out the fact that the Bruins have made the most of their limited opportunities against high quality opponents.
Compared to some middle of the pack high major conference teams, Belmont only got eight chances this season against what the NCAA classifies as top level opponents. In those games against Quadrant One and Quadrant Two teams, the Bruins posted a 5-3 record. They also have the most true road victories of any team in the country and went 16-2 during the OVC’a regular season.
Would you rather see this team or Indiana, Alabama or Clemson in Bracketville?
A lot of people got their first good look at Windler and the Bruins Saturday night, which shouldn’t hurt their chances. But will it
be enough to punch their dance card for the first time since 2015?
Belmont is good enough to win in the NCAA Tournament, but the committee would have to show love to a conference that has been snubbed by at-large selections multiple times before.
For Byrd and the Bruins it will be a long wait before they learn their fate with Selection Sunday still eight days away.
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