EVANSVILLE, Ind. — Coach Chancellor Dugan's old stomping grounds became exactly that on Thursday at the Physical Activities Center.

Behind an emphatic 87-59 victory over Southern Indiana in its regular-season finale, the No. 25 Bellarmine University women's basketball team sealed the No. 3 seed in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament.

Dugan, who guided Southern Indiana to an appearance in the national championship game in the 1990s, has led Bellarmine to a 21-3 overall record and 15-3 mark in conference play. The Knights had already clinched second place in the GLVC East and first-round bye in the GLVC Tournament but solidified their seed in the postseason on Thursday against the Screaming Eagles (14-12, 7-11).

Junior forward Sarah Galvin led Bellarmine with 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting, junior guard Whitney Hartlage added 16 points behind 4-of-6 accuracy from 3-point range and sophomore guard Raven Merriweather chipped in 10 points. Freshman center Ally Mayhaus ripped down a career-high 13 rebounds, junior guard Kelsey Adwell had six assists and senior guard Mackenzie Martinez contributed five assists and three steals.

Bellarmine buried a season-high 12 3-pointers and shot a sizzling 57.1 percent from behind the arc, its second-best output of the season. The Knights shot a season-best 56.7 percent overall. In addition to Hartlage's four 3-pointers, junior guard Destony Curry sank three and Merriweather and senior forward Nicole Bryant canned two apiece.

"I thought there were parts of this game where that's the best we've played all season," Dugan said.

Indeed, in addition to the shooting percentages, Bellarmine had a 28-13 advantage in points off turnovers and a 37-19 superiority in bench scoring. For good measure, the Knights hit seven of their eight free-throw attempts.

Bellarmine trailed 21-20 after the first quarter but pushed ahead in the second to lead 43-37. The Knights then dominated the second half, outscoring the Screaming Eagles 44-22 after the intermission. BU racked up 24 assists on 34 baskets.

"When we move the ball, it's huge for us," Dugan said. "That's when we were sharp and we looked good."

Bellarmine definitely looked good in the second half when the Knights shot a blistering 61.5 percent and nailed half of their dozen 3-pointers. Southern Indiana scored the first basket of the second half, but BU built a double-digit lead on the strength of a 9-2 run capped by a Hartlage trifecta.

Another 3 by Hartlage and a layup by sophomore forward Brooke Valentine spiked the lead to 19. In the fourth, Merriweather canned a 3-pointer and Bryant knocked down two more treys as the lead swelled to 24. It got all the way up to 29 as the Knights put an exclamation point on their regular season.

"It feels like we've turned a corner," Dugan said, "and we want to keep going."

Bellarmine is one of four teams with a bye in the opening round of the GLVC Tournament. Following the four first-round contests, the winners will be reseeded Nos. 5-8 and placed against the tournament's top four seeds. The Knights will play in the GLVC Tournament quarterfinals on Thursday in St. Charles, Mo.

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BOX SCORE (HTM)
GLVC TOURNAMENT (PDF)