Bellarmine basketball built an early lead and never trailed as they were able to notch their first-ever ASun conference victory over host Florida Gulf Coast 74-60.
The Bellarmine basketball program got off to a hot start early in the game by going on a 14-2 run after FGCU scored the opening basket. The teams then proceeded to go 5+ minutes without scoring a basket as the defense on both teams forced each other into bad shots. The Eagles ended the scoring drought but then the Knights went on a 17-4 run to go up 20. Bellarmine would end the half up 39-18.
The 2nd half began with CJ Fleming drilling back to back threes, the first moving him into the top 10 for three-pointers in school history, to go up 27. However, FGCU would not go away and kept battling back the rest of the way. Caleb Catto would drill a corner three with 2:20 left to bring the deficit to 10. That would be the closest they came the rest of the way as the Knights would make their free throws down the stretch to escape with the victory.
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Takeaways from Bellarmine Basketball’s Historic Day
Defense was the key for the Knights all game. The team finished the game with 10 steals by 7 different Knights. They also finished with 4 blocks including 2 by Pedro Bradshaw. The team also forced 17 turnovers and held the Eagles to 36.8% from the field.
Rebounding was once again a positive for the Knights as they were able to pull down 42 total rebounds including 10 on the offensive side. The Knights outrebounded the Eagles 42-32 and came up with some clutch rebounds toward the end of the game to prevent 2nd chance opportunities for FGCU. Bradshaw once again led the team in rebounding with 8, all on the defensive end.
Points in the paint has been a go to for the Bellarmine offense and they continued to attack it all game. They finished with 36 points in the paint, 28 coming on layups.
Player of the Game
It was a full team effort to get the victory but there was a trio of guys who stuck out. Dylan Penn had an all-around performance by stuffing the stat sheet with 12 points, 6 rebounds and a team-high 7 assists. Ethan Claycomb’s first half helped build the Knights early lead as he finished with 15 points on an efficient 5-7 from the field including 1-3 from behind the arc. He also added 6 rebounds and 2 steals. Penn and Claycomb both had 2 offensive rebounds. Fleming finished with a team-high 19 points including knocking down a team high three 3 pointers.
Next Opponent
The Knights (4-5, 1-2 ASun) will have a rematch against the Eagles (5-3, 0-1) at 7 on Saturday. The game will be televised on ESPN+ and can be listened to on ESPN 680 and 105.7 (note this is a change from their usual broadcast on 93.9 The Ville).
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