NASHVILLE, Tenn. – It wasn't 17-0 this time.
Maryville opened its 2024-25 season – kind of opened – here Monday night with an exhibition game against Belmont of the Division I Missouri Valley Conference. The host Bruins saved their best form for the second half and pulled away to a 93-70 decision over the Scots.
But not before Maryville put together a half of basketball that sent shockwaves across the Division III landscape. Maryville led for most of the first 20 minutes and went to the halftime locker room in front 43-40.
No, it didn't last. But it sure was fun for a while.
"We had the utmost respect for who they are, what they've been about for two decades," Maryville head coach
Raul Placeres said. "What Coach Rick Byrd did here and what Coach Casey Alexander has done after replacing a legend, kudos to them.
"But we came in here with no fear. We were going to go out there and play our brand of basketball and do what we do. I was really pleased."
Franklin's Favorite
Reed Kemp, playing in front of his family and friends from nearby Franklin, scored 20 of his game-high 24 points in the first half. Over that opening stanza, Kemp was 6-of-9 from the floor – including one 3-pointer – and 7-of-8 from the line in just under 16 minutes
"Yeah, I'm just so grateful and blessed to be here right now," Kemp said. "I'm just super happy that we got to experience this and give them a game like that.
"It's just awesome having all my family here and I can't express it enough. I'm super proud of our guys and Coach P and Coach Jeff for having us prepared. Of course you want to win, but it was competitive. They can't say that we didn't give them a game."
Belmont in the second half shot 54 percent from the floor and held Maryville to 29 percent, including 3-of-13 from long range.
After the Bruins went ahead 70-53 and it looked like they might coast to the finish, Maryville made one last push at the upset.
Collin Smith swished a 3-pointer and then
Javi Rosell picked a Bruin pocket and raced in for an uncontested layup, pulling the Scots within 74-66 with 6:21 remaining.
But that was as close as the pesky visitors could pull. Belmont answered with a 10-0 run and order was restored.
Morgan Competes for 17 and 4
Chase Morgan added 17 points and four rebounds against the towering Bruins, who wore down the Scots as the game went along. Belmont outscored Maryville 53-27 in the second half, closing the game on a 19-4 run over the final 6 minutes.
Deeper in the box score, Smith made his only two 3-point attempts for six points, Rosell was 3-of-4 from the field for six points to go with five assists, and
Jackson Garner ground his way to six points while
Jaylon Green scored five. Smith, Kemp and
Jamal Ware were the rebounding leaders with five.
"The guys really drove to the basket," Placeres said. "A lot of the shots were a little bit tough for us at the rim, but we are not going to see that type of height and length consistently at our level.
"So, for us, we got the looks we wanted. Now as we continue, we should be able to get even better looks."
First Division I Opponent Since 2022
NCAA rules allow Division I teams to play one countable game per year against a lower-division opponent, without the game counting for the smaller program. So Maryville remains 0-0 heading into its actual opener Saturday at home against Averett.
This was Maryville's first exhibition contest since the Scots played at Middle Tennessee two years ago, falling 69-46 in a game that began with the Blue Raiders scoring the first 17 points.
Placeres called Monday night a good way to start the season.
"It's a great way to culminate our scrimmage and exhibition preseason," Placeres said. "We played really well against Transylvania, and tonight we played hard and had a good showing here at Belmont.
"I'm really proud of the turnout we had from our fans, friends, former players – it was great. Our president was here with our interim AD. It was a showcase of our program, and I couldn't be prouder. Now we enjoy it for another 24 hours, then flush it and get ready for Averett."
