By Dalton McGlone, Staff Writer
The Knights are on a three-game win streak after defeating the University of Indianapolis 96-66 Thursday at Knights Hall. Bellarmine improved to 21-3 (12-3 Great Lakes Valley Conference) while UIndy fell to 17-8 (10-5 GLVC).
Seniors Daniel Ramser and Chivarsky Corbett returned to the lineup Thursday after missing the past two weeks due to injury. Ramser notched three points, two rebounds and three assists in 17 minutes. Corbett bounced back with five points, eight rebounds, two steals and a block in 18 minutes.
Bellarmine head coach Scott Davenport was excited to see the pair of seniors return.
“It was an amazing effort,” Davenport said. “(Corbett) practiced one day this week… Daniel (Ramser) practiced Tuesday and Wednesday… It was great watching the players feed off each other.”
Bellarmine’s offense started slow. In the first half, the Knights shot 48 percent from the field and only made one 3-pointer on seven attempts. The Knights forced shots in traffic as they struggled to move the ball.
On the other hand, UIndy’s 3-point shooting kept the game close. The Greyhounds made seven of their 14 3-point attempts. With the help of three straight 3-pointers, the Greyhounds scored 14 of their 35 points in the last five minutes of the first half. The Knights held a slim 41-35 lead at halftime.
The Knights got the ball moving in the second half. Senior guard Tyler Jenkins’ 3-pointer to start the half was what they needed to grab momentum. Bellarmine took full advantage of the Greyhounds’ mistakes, scoring 30 points off turnovers. A 20-7 Bellarmine run was capped off by a dunk in transition by guard Dylan Penn off an outlet pass from Jenkins with 13 minutes left. The Knights never looked back and took complete control of the game.
“In the second half, we would make one pass or dribble off the bounce and take a jump shot,” Indianapolis head coach Stan Gouard said. “We didn’t make (Bellarmine) work on defense. When we got down, we hit the panic button too early. We shot the ball too fast. That’s why we shot the ball so poorly in the second half.”
Bellarmine guard CJ Fleming was pleased with the team’s offensive turnaround.
“It really started on the defensive-end,” Fleming said. “We got clean defensive rebounds and were able to get out in transition. Once we get in transition, we get better shots and better cuts. It just opens the floor up.”
Six Bellarmine seniors will play their last home basketball game Saturday against Lewis University at 3:15 p.m. Lewis is 20-4 (12-3 GLVC) and is riding an eight-game win streak. Seniors Daniel Ramser, Skyler Hunter, Adam Eberhard, Chivarsky Corbett, Willie Schurfranz and Tyler Jenkins along with managers Ben Thompson and Joe Simon will be honored before tip-off.