Bellarmine advances in A-Sun tourney
By GREG MENGELT
LOUISVILLE — All five starters scored in double figures and Bellarmine had little trouble moving on to the Atlantic Sun Tournament semifinals with a 81-68 victory over Florida Gulf Coast on Thursday at Freedom Hall.
The Knights (18-13) shot 55.2 percent from the field (32 of 58) and 45.2 percent of their 3-pointers (14 of 31) and outscored the Eagles 46-30 in the second half.
With the game tied at 64-apiece, senior forward Ethan Claycomb (Vincennes) knocked down a jumper that ignited a game-changing 14-0 run that was capped off by a Curt Hopf (Montgomery/Barr-Reeve) 3-pointer that put Bellarmine in front 78-64 with 3:02 remaining.
Bellarmine will play at Liberty (22-10) and the defending conference tournament champions Saturday in a A-Sun semifinal. The Flames defeated the Knights 66-53 at Freedom Hall on Feb. 3. Jacksonville State (21-9) and Jacksonville (20-9) meet in the other semifinal at Jacksonville, Ala.
Senior guard CJ Fleming (Cincinnati/LaSalle) led Belllarmine with 19 points, while senior guard Dylan Penn (Evansville/Memorial) had 17 points and 10 assists. Former Providence standout Juston Betz finished with 10 points, on 5 of 6 shooting, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Claycomb scored 16 points and Hopf 11.
FGCU’s Atlantic Sun Player of the Year candidate Tevion Martin-Dunn led all scorers with 27 points.