Getty Belmont Bruins center Nick Muszynski.
The Belmont Bruins basketball team will host the Eastern Kentucky Colonels in Ohio Valley Conference play on Saturday.
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The game (7 p.m. ET start time) won’t be on TV anywhere, but anyone in the US can watch it live on ESPN+:
ESPN+ is the digital streaming service from ESPN that has exclusive coverage of over 1,500 college basketball games this season (including most OVC games), plus other live sports every day, all the 30-for-30 documentaries, and additional original content (both video and written) all for $4.99 per month.
Or, if you also want the new Disney+ streaming service and Hulu, you can get all three for $12.99 per month, which works out to 25 percent savings.
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Once signed up for ESPN+, you can then watch Belmont vs Eastern Kentucky live 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 streaming device via the ESPN app.
Belmont vs Eastern Kentucky Preview
These squads met in Nashville on Jan. 16, as the Bruins pounded Eastern Kentucky 87-56 behind a 16-point, 8-rebound, 4-assist effort from center Nick Muszynski.
Six of Muszynski’s points came in the game’s first 10 minutes, as the Bruins built a 24-9 advantage.
“We made things happen early and it was nice to get that lead early and the game was really in a hands from then on,” Bruins head coach Casey Alexander said, according to the Belmont Vision.
Belmont guard Grayson Murphy pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds to go with 7 points, 5 assists, a pair of steals, and a block.
“The energy was from the crowd and from what we gave to them and Grayson always has something to do with that,” Alexander said, per the Belmont Vision. “He made so many big plays and emotional plays early in the game for us.”
Belmont’s victory was the fourth in a five-game streak. They then dropped two straight, but they’ve ripped off seven consecutive wins since to improve to 21-7 overall and 12-3 in OVC play, a game behind the Austin Peay Governors for the conference’s top spot.
“We still have a lot of tough games going into the conference tournament,” Belmont guard Adam Kunkel said after a Feb. 15 victory over the Jacksonville State Gamecocks, per the Belmont Vision. “We just need to finish strong and keep the momentum going.”
The Colonels followed the defeat to Belmont with a six-game winning streak. They’ve split a quartet of conference game since to settle in at 14-14 on the year and 11-4 in OVC play. They’re two victories from tying a program record for conference wins in a season.
Saturday’s tilt will feature a matchup of two of the conference’s better backcourt scorers. Among OVC players, Eastern Kentucky’s Jomaru Brown ranks fourth in points per game (19.1) and second in steals per game (2). Kunkel, a fellow sophomore, is seventh in points per game (17), third in 3-point percentage (39.5%), and fourth in 3-pointers made per game (2.6).
Kunkel played sparingly last season, averaging 9.3 minutes and 2.3 points per contest. Brown was named to the All-OVC newcomer team after averaging 14.4 points and 1.9 steals per game. He was then named to this year’s 11-member All-OVC preseason team, along with Muszynski and Murphy.
“It’s a blessing honestly. I didn’t really expect it,” Brown said in October, per the Eastern Progress. “Coach [A.W. Hamilton] had told me and I saw it on Twitter and I was like ‘wow, it’s a blessing.’ Last year as a freshman and getting the achievements I got was a blessing.”