EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. — The Bellarmine University men's basketball team retained its Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament crown.

Junior forward Adam Eberhard's tenure as the tournament's reigning Most Valuable Player will continue as well.

On Sunday at SIU Edwardsville's Vadalabene Center, the fourth-ranked and top-seeded Knights locked down their second straight GLVC Tournament championship with a 75-61 triumph over second-seeded Truman State.

"That was an incredibly courageous performance," Coach Scott Davenport said after noting Bellarmine had played away from Knights Hall in seven of its last eight games, a daunting stretch that BU conquered in undefeated fashion. "The execution in all three games (in the GLVC Tournament) was tremendous."

Eberhard garnered tournament MVP honors for the second year in a row after registering 21 points, 15 rebounds and six assists against a single turnover in the title game against Truman State (20-10) for Bellarmine (28-2), which captured its fourth GLVC Tournament title after first going back-to-back in 2010 and 2011.

"It could have been any one of us," Eberhard said in deflecting praise for the MVP accolade. "We play as a team. We don't have any ego. We just want the win."

They earned a win for the 11th game in a row. Senior guard Brent Bach was instrumental in the Knights' repeat, piling up a game- and career-high 30 points in the championship game. Sophomore forward Alex Cook chipped in 13 points and nine rebounds. Both Bach and Cook were named to the All-Tournament Team.

"The team has played great all year," Bach said. "We never take any days off."

Bellarmine certainly didn't in the finals against a dangerous Truman State squad. The Knights started strong as Bach drained a 3-pointer for a 27-15 lead with 6:45 left in the first half. The Bulldogs chipped away, but Bellarmine still led 33-25 at the intermission following a Bach jumper.

Less than 10 seconds into the second half, Cook found Eberhard for a basket as Bellarmine's lead grew again to double digits. Another Bach 3-pointer gave the Knights their largest lead of the game at 16 with 12:37 left.

Truman State was down 14 with 8:09 left after an Eberhard layup, but the Bulldogs made a last gasp to get within five with 2:13 left. Cook followed with a backbreaking basket, sticking a layup off an Eberhard feed while being fouled. He sank the free throw and when Truman State proceeded with a turnover on its next possession, the Knights had essentially wrapped up another GLVC Tourney title.

Eberhard and Bach combined to nail a bevy of free throws over the final 1:30. The Knights were 12 of 13 from the charity stripe in the second half.

"It feels good to put in the work and see it pay off," said senior guard Jarek Coles, who tallied seven rebounds and four assists. "We work so hard and I'm glad to see us get that victory."

At 45.3 percent from the field, Bellarmine didn't have one of its customary shooting performances, although the Knights did hit 50 percent of their shots in the second half. Where Bellarmine dominated was in the paint, racking up a 44-16 superiority in points in that area.

It was the defensive end of the floor that Bellarmine perhaps made its biggest imprint. The Knights limited Truman State to 33.3 percent shooting, including 26.5 percent (9 of 34) from 3-point range. Bellarmine also carried a 45-36 rebounding advantage.

"They want to defend and they want to rebound," Davenport said. "It was a heck of a defensive effort."

Jake Velky paced Truman State with 17 points and Brodric Thomas added 16. That duo was named to the All-Tournament Team.

The DII NCAA Tournament field will be revealed at 10:30 (ET) tonight. Bellarmine was already a sure thing to go "dancing" but the Knights nonetheless locked up an automatic bid after claiming the GLVC Tournament championship.

Observing his squad during the post-game festivities, Davenport said, "They don't look like a satisfied team right now."

For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow us on Twitter (@BUKnights), Instagram (BUKnights), Facebook (BUKnights) and the BUKnights mobile app available for iPhone and Android.

BOX SCORE (HTM)