2019–20 Belmont Bruins men's basketball team explained

Mode:	Basketball
Year:	2019–20
Team:	Belmont Bruins
Conference:	Ohio Valley Conference
Short Conf:	OVC
Record:	26–7
Conf Record:	15–3
Hc Year:	1st
Assoc Coach:	Brian Ayers
Asst Coach2:	Sean Rutigliano
Asst Coach3:	Tyler Holloway
Champion:	OVC regular season co-champions OVC tournament champions

The 2019–20 Belmont Bruins men's basketball team represented Belmont University in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bruins, led by first-year head coach Casey Alexander, played their home games at the Curb Event Center in Nashville, Tennessee as members of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 26–7, 15–3 in OVC play to finish in a tie for the OVC regular season championship. They defeated Eastern Kentucky and Murray State to be champions of the OVC tournament. They earned the OVC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. However, the NCAA Tournament was cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Previous season

The Bruins finished the 2018–19 season 27–6 overall, 16–2 in OVC play to finish as Ohio Valley regular season co-champions, alongside Murray State. In the OVC tournament, they defeated Austin Peay in the semifinals,^[1] advancing to the championship, where they were defeated by Murray State.^[2] Due to their successful season, they received an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament, earning the No. 11 seed in the East Region.^[3] They were matched up against fellow No. 11 seed Temple in the First Four, winning the game 81–70, earning their first NCAA Tournament win in program history.^[4] They faced No. 6 seeded Maryland in the first round, nearly pulling off the upset, losing 77–79.^[5]

On April 1, 2019, longtime head coach Rick Byrd announced that he was retiring, after leading the team for 33 years.^[6] On April 10, Lipscomb head coach and Belmont alum Casey Alexander was named as Byrd's successor.^[7]

Schedule and results

|-!colspan=12 style=| Non-conference regular season|-!colspan=9 style=| OVC regular season|-!colspan=12 style=| Ohio Valley Conference tournament|-Source^[8]

Notes and References

1. News: On to the Title Game. Belmont Bruins. December 2, 2019. en.
2. News: Murray State Wins 2019 OVC Men's Basketball tournament championship. Ohio Valley Conference. December 2, 2019. en.
3. News: Belmont gets first ever at-large bid for NCAA Tournament. Belmont Vision. December 2, 2019. en.
4. News: Belmont vs. No. 6 Maryland Set for Round 1 After Win vs. Temple in First Four. Bleacher Report. December 2, 2019. en.
5. News: NCAA Tournament Maryland vs Belmont: Bruins upset falls short. Tennessean. December 2, 2019. en.
6. News: Belmont coach Rick Byrd announces retirement after 33 years leading the program. CBSSports.com. December 2, 2019. en.
7. News: Welcome, Coach Alexander. Belmont Bruins. December 2, 2019. en.
8. News: 2019-20 Belmont Men's Basketball Schedule. Belmont Bruins. December 2, 2019. en.