BY QUIN WELCH, Sports Editor
Bellarmine men’s basketball passed a test on Saturday. The No. 3 Knights, fresh off of tough exhibitions against Louisville, Cincinnati and Indiana, defeated the Northwood Timberwolves 89-79 at Knights Hall in the GLVC-GLIAC Challenge.
The unranked Timberwolves made a statement and led 42-41 at halftime. Northwood hung around for the majority of the second half, forcing Bellarmine to respond. And Bellarmine coach Scott Davenport certainly was happy with his players’ response.
“I’m really proud of our guys… We have a 15-point lead down the stretch based on our stops and our ability to rebound the ball and hit free throws,” Davenport said.
In the absence of star forward Josh Derksen, the Knights needed other players to score. Junior forward Rusty Troutman had a career-high 27 points. While most players know when they’re hot, Troutman was trying to let the game come to him.
“I was just playing, man,” Troutman said. “I got started off hitting that three, and it just kept going easy from there.”
Although Troutman went 7 of 11 from the field and 2 of 3 behind the arc, he did a significant amount of damage from the free-throw line, shooting 11 of 12 from the stripe. Troutman said he considers shooting from the free-throw line easy money.
“They’re calling fouls in my favor when I cut and stuff… Free throws are easy for me,” Troutman said. “Once I get there, they’re going down every time. I got a high confidence from the free-throw line right now.”
Yasin Kolo, the senior transfer from Hartford, started his Bellarmine career with a bang in the absence of Derksen. The German scored 22 points and grabbed an impressive 15 rebounds. After scoring only four points in the first half, Kolo said he knew it was his time to step up.
“My first half didn’t really go too well. I said to myself, ‘I need to be there for my team,’” Kolo said. “I thought I just had to step it up.”
Kolo showed he can step outside and knock down 3-pointers on Saturday night, hitting both of his 3-point attempts for the game. The senior forward said he’s comfortable shooting from long distances.
“If I’m wide open, I think I can knock it down with confidence,” Kolo said.
Adam Eberhard stated his case for more playing time, with the freshman scoring 16 points and grabbing nine rebounds against Northwood. Davenport raved about his freshman talent and likened the Evansville, Indiana, native to one of the Knights’ most productive players.
“Rusty Troutman and Adam Eberhard, they’re basketball players. They affect the game and their team in so many ways,” Davenport said. “Adam, one rebound from a double-double, playing a great team in your first college game and you’re coming off the bench? I mean that’s phenomenal.”
The Knights will conclude the GLVC-GLIAC Challenge against Saginaw Valley State on Sunday. SVSU defeated St. Joseph’s 88-59 Saturday night at Knights Hall before Bellarmine’s game against Northwood.