Bellarmine basketball traveled to Florence, Alabama to take on the North Alabama Lions and once again came away with a sweep to push their winning streak to 10 games.
North Alabama started game 1 strong and scored the first 8 points of the game. The Lions would dominate in the first half and hold the lead until the final minutes of the half when Bellarmine basketball took the lead and entered the half up 5.
The Knights controlled the majority of the 2nd half but the Lions never went away. BU was up by 10 with 3:03 remaining before UNA closed the game with an 8-0 run. North Alabama had a chance to tie lie after intentionally missing a free throw but failed to secure a rebound as Bellarmine escaped with a 66-64 win.
Game 2 was a lot different. Bellarmine basketball opened the game scoring the first 11 point. The first half was arguably the Knights’ best of the season. The offense exploded for 54 points and entered the half up 23. The team would get the lead up to as much as 32 as they coasted to an 87-63 victory. Dylan Penn had a great game as he scored 17 points and dished out 5 assists.
Takeaways
The story for game 2 of the series was drawing charges. Time after time, Bellarmine beat North Alabama to their spot to draw a charge and change the possessions. The team was not afraid of contact and would do anything to get the ball back.
Additionally, Bellarmine basketball was great at forcing steals. Over the two games, they forced 16 steals. Pedro Bradshaw and Dylan Penn each recorded 2 steals in both games. Juston Betz finished with 3 steals on the weekend.
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Conference Standings Update
The Knights are still in first place in the ASUN with two weeks remaining. They currently lead Liberty by a game in the conference standings since Bellarmine is 2 games ahead in the win column.
Bellarmine basketball’s Player of the Series
A week after being named ASUN Conference co-player of the Week, Pedro Bradshaw continued his incredible season. On Friday, Bradshaw scored 24 and added 9 rebounds. He also got after it on the defensive end coming away with 2 steals and a block. He shot 7-12 from the field and a perfect 9-9 from the free-throw line. Game 2 was a much quieter night by his standards as he dropped 14with 2 rebounds and 3 assists. He shot a respectable 4-6 from the field and 6-7 at the line. Don’t be surprised if he comes away with another conference player of the week honor.
Next Opponent
The Knights (13-5, 10-2 ASun) will stay on the road and travel to take on the North Florida Ospreys (7-13, 5-5). The Ospreys are led by Carter Hendrickson who averages 16.1 points and 4.9 rebounds.
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