Getty The Belmont Bruins will visit the Jacksonville State Gamecocks on Wednesday.
The Belmont Bruins will visit the Jacksonville State Gamecocks in an Ohio Valley Conference rematch on Wednesday.
The game is scheduled to start at 8:15 p.m. ET. While it won’t be broadcast nationally on television anywhere in the US, you can still watch a live stream of the game on your computer, phone or streaming device via ESPN+, the new digital streaming service from ESPN (no cable required) that has exclusive coverage to dozens of college basketball games–and several other sports–every week.
You can sign up for a free seven-day trial of ESPN+ right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the game on your computer via ESPN.com, or on your phone (Android and iPhone compatible), tablet, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4, Xbox One or other compatible streaming device via the ESPN app.
If you can’t watch live, all games — including Belmont vs Jacksonville State — that are streamed on ESPN+ are also available to be watched afterwards on-demand via ESPN.com or the ESPN app.
Belmont vs Jacksonville State Preview
The Bruins and the Gamecocks opened their Ohio Valley Conference schedules against one another; Jacksonville State pulled out an 83-73 victory 19-points, 12-rebound, eight-assist performance from senior forward Jason Burnell at home.
The Bruins rank ninth in the nation at 86.3 points per game, and their 48.2 percent shooting from the field is good for 39th out of 353 teams. But Jacksonville State held them to 44.1 percent shooting and won the turnover (11-8) and rebounding (42-32) battles.
“This is a good win for us,” Gamecocks head coach Ray Harper said, according to the JSU athletics department website. “But it means we’re 1-0. We have to get another one on Saturday. We can celebrate this one, but we have to realize we are on a business trip. This trip doesn’t end until Saturday at Tennessee State.”
It was JSU’s fourth consecutive victory over the Bruins.
“They’ll make some changes, I’m sure,” Harper said of teams’ next meeting, according to The Anniston Star. “We’ll make some changes, some additions. We always add a little bit each week. We’ll throw a few new wrinkles in this week, as well. Should be a great game and hopefully people will come out to [Pete Mathews Coliseum] and pack this place Thursday night.”
The Gamecocks hold opponents to 66.1 points per game, the 49th-best mark in the country, and 39.8 percent shooting, good for 35th.
They’ve ridden that defense to three more wins and a 4-0 record in OVC play.
“You have to have patience, because you’re not going to be able to run one action and get a wide-open look,” Eastern Illinois coach Jay Spoonhour said of the Gamecocks defense before his team fell to JSU 69-62 on January 10, according to the Journal Gazette & Times-Courier. “You’re going to have to work for every shot.”
Spoonhour added: “They have the ability, because of their length and quickness, to shut off a lot of stuff. They have the ability to switch just about every position.”
Their last time out, the Gamecocks demolished Southern Illinois-Edwardsville 90-54. Starting in place of the injured Christian Cunningham, junior forward Jacara Cross hit all seven of his field goal attempts and his lone free throw for a career-high 15 points in 15 minutes of action.
“He’s starting to slow down and let the game come to him and play really well,” Harper said, per The Anniston Star. “He had some really good post moves, and he’s been really good for us on the defensive end. It’s huge with Christian getting hurt. He’s stepping up at the right time.”
Belmont has also won their three conference tests since the matchup with JSU, most recently topping Eastern Kentucky 109-93 behind a career-high 28 points from senior guard Kevin McClain.