EVANSVILLE, Ind. — The No. 9 Bellarmine University men's basketball team couldn't hold a big lead over Southern Indiana as the Screaming Eagles rallied in the second half and ultimately dealt the Knights an 89-82 loss in overtime in their Great Lakes Valley Conference regular-season finale at the Physical Activities Center.

Bellarmine (22-5, 15-3 GLVC) had already sealed the top seed in the GLVC Tournament. With the loss to USI (18-10, 10-8), the Knights share a GLVC East division title with Wisconsin-Parkside, which defeated Lewis.

George Suggs joined the 1,000-point club for Bellarmine. The senior forward needed 16 points and scored 22. Junior forward Rusty Troutman paced the Knights with 23 points.

Bellarmine shot 54.8 percent in the first half and drained eight of its 12 3-point attempts to build a 45-30 lead at halftime. The Knights led by as many as 19.

It was a different story in the second half. Bellarmine shot only 38.5 percent, while Southern Indiana shot 51.9 percent. A bad tone was set for the Knights when the Screaming Eagles began the second half on a 9-0 run.

Bellarmine pushed back to gain a 14-point lead with 11:36 left and still led by 12 with 7:07 remaining. However, Southern Indiana used an 11-0 run to get within one inside four minutes.

Suggs sank a 3-pointer for a 73-69 lead with 2:38 left, but the Screaming Eagles managed to tie it at 74 with 52 seconds remaining after making five straight free throws. The Knights missed a shot from close range, and USI had two chances to win after grabbing an offensive rebound following a miss but the Screaming Eagles were unsuccessful both times.

Bellarmine never led in the overtime. The Screaming Eagles had five offensive rebounds in the extra session. With 1:25 left, the Knights missed an open 3-pointer for the lead, and USI hit one on the other end for a five-point advantage with 57 seconds left. Troutman followed with a basket, but the Screaming Eagles hit a pair of free throws and held on for the upset win.

Southern Indiana's balance countered the big nights from Troutman and Suggs. T.J. Tisdell had 19 points and 15 rebounds, Jeril Taylor had 18 points, Alex Stein chipped in 16, Bobo Drummond contributed 13 and Shane Seniour added 12.

USI had 19 offensive rebounds and a 20-10 advantage in second-chance points. The Screaming Eagles were 23 of 31 from the free-throw line. Bellarmine attempted only 12 shots from the charity stripe, hitting nine.

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 March 4 in St. Charles, Missouri.

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