NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)—Vladimir Kuljanin scored 20 points, and UNC Wilmington trailed only once in holding off Belmont 88-83 Monday night in the opening round of the NIT Season Tip-off.
The Seahawks won their fourth straight season opener under Benny Moss in his head coaching debut, and they will play No. 25 Tennessee, a 78-71 winner over Fordham, in the second round Tuesday night with a berth in semifinals in New York on the line.
Belmont (0-1) will play Fordham in the consolation game.
The Seahawks, the defending Colonial Athletic Association champs, led most of the game even though Belmont was playing in an arena only a couple miles away from its own gym. The Bruins made it tight down the stretch.
Josh Goodwin hit a pair of free throws with 2:24 left to pull Belmont within 81-80. Kuljanin hit a bucket, and the Seahawks hit 3-of-4 free throws in the final 43.1 seconds.
UNC Wilmington led by as much as 31-19 in the first half and was up 40-34 at halftime.
Matthew Dotson hit his first four 3-pointers in the second half, and his third—this from the top of the key with 16:39 left, gave Belmont its lone lead at 45-44. But the Seahawks scored consecutive baskets and didn’t trail again.
Montez Downey added 17 points for UNC Wilmington. Daniel Fountain scored 14, and Temi Soyebo had 10.
Dotson, who averaged 5.2 points per game last season, finished with 19 for Belmont. Justin Hare had a team-high 20 points, Andrew Preston 17 and Goodwin 14. )
