MIAMI SHORES, Fla.—In one of the nation's premier NCAA Division II games of the season, the No. 3/7 Bellarmine Knights led nearly wire-to-wire in defeating No. 8/5 Barry 75-69 on day one of the Buccaneers' Cesar Odio Thanksgiving Classic.
 
Sawyer Glick drained a triple just 12 seconds into the game to give the host Buccaneers the early lead, but the Knights grabbed a lead they would never surrender when Brent Bach's layup gave Bellarmine a 4-3 lead with 18:39 in the first half. 
 
However, the game lived up to its billing.  After the Knights spurted out to a 26-11 advantage, Barry battled back to within three at 32-29 before Bellarmine recorded the first half's final bucket to lead 34-29 at the break.
 
Coming back on the court in the second period, both teams showed why they consistently rank among the nation's best for shooting percentage by making the first seven field goal attempted.
 
Fortunately for the Knights, four of the seven were made by the visitors and all four came from behind the arc, meaning Bellarmine extended its lead to 11 points (47-36), and the Buccaneers hadn't missed a shot.
 
Again, Barry refused to quit and whittled Bellarmine's lead to just one with 12:41 remaining. This time it was the Knights who responded, regrouping with a 14-2 run to give them a 13-point bulge with 5:52 remaining.
 
Coming down the stretch, Barry closed to within four on a couple of occasions as their full-court press caused several Bellarmine turnovers, but the Knights eventually salted away the victory by converting free throws.  Junior Adam Eberhard drained five of six in the final 43 seconds to ice the game for the Knights.
 
"This was an incredible program win on the road against a great team," said Bellarmine Coach Scott Davenport.  "That's two of the best basketball teams in Division II basketball playing.  That team there (Barry), I'll take them to the Elite 8.  I haven't seen them all, but we study all the regions, and that is an incredibly talented basketball team."
 
Davenport added that to get such a marquee win while enduring a grueling travel schedule made the victory even more impressive.

"Here's what people need to know," Davenport explained. "This basketball team arrived back at Bellarmine's campus at 4 a.m. Wednesday (after playing at Wayne State on Tuesday night).  We practiced that afternoon at 3 o'clock, and we were back on campus Thursday at 4 a.m. to depart for the airport.  If you think that's not a courageous effort, just go try that."   
 
In his pregame analysis, Bellarmine radio commentator Mark Bugg said that despite all the offensive accolades by both teams, the team that played the better defense would win.  Turned out, Bugg was right on target.
 
Barry came into the game shooting 57.6 percent on the year while taking 31 3-pointers a game. The Buccaneers had averaged making 15 triples per contest for a 48.4 percent conversion rate from downtown.
 
Today, Bellarmine was able to hold Barry to just 41.4 percent shooting overall and 34.6 percent (9-26) from beyond the arc.  The Knights also turned the ball over six fewer times (15-9) while coming up with nine steals on defense.
 
Davenport said the defensive effort should not come as a surprise.  "We have tried to rebrand ourselves that we're not just a one-dimensional 'Oh, they're a bunch of guys who pass the ball and hit open shots.' We're not.  We led the GLVC in field goal defense the last two years.  That's an 18-game body of work."
 
Meanwhile, Bellarmine's offense continued to hum efficiently. The Knights made 50 percent of their shots, including a robust 11 of 25 from 3-point range. Eberhard led the offensive output with 18 points, making all four of his field goal attempts and knocking home nine of 10 free throws in the game.
 
Ben Weyer turned in another outstanding shooting performance, making four of five triples and both of his free throws for 14 points. Bach matched that point total while leading the Knights with a career-high six rebounds. Jarek Coles dished out a team-high four assists.
 
For the home team, which had five different players averaging in double digits, Johannes Dolven led the way with 16, coming off the bench to log 23 minutes and make eight of 13 shots. Preseason All-American Elvar Fridricksson turned in a solid performance with 13 points and eight assists.
 
The Knights have little time to celebrate their victory. Bellarmine is back action tomorrow at noon to face Lynn University on Day 2 of the Cesar Odio Thanksgiving Classic.  Lynn, nicknamed the Fighting Knights, were 69-68 winners over Grand Valley State in the classic's opening game.
 
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