LOUISVILLE, Ky.—The ASUN Championship quarterfinal matchups have been set, and Bellarmine will host Florida Gulf Coast University on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Freedom Hall.
The Knights are the No. 2 seed from the West and the Eagles are the No. 3 seed from the East. FGCU defeated North Alabama 81-72 on Tuesday night in the ASUN tourney opening round.
Thursday's matchup will be the Eagles' first trip to Freedom Hall as both games between the schools last year were in Fort Myers, Florida, as was their only contest this year. Bellarmine has won all three meetings.
The Knights roared back from an early 11-point deficit to post a 74-63 win on Jan. 29 in Alico Arena earlier this year.
CJ Fleming led the Bellarmine attack with 23 points, while Tavian Dunn-Martin netted 24 for the Eagles.
Bellarmine turned in a gritty defensive performance in January, holding FGCU to 37.5 percent shooting and winning the turnover battle 13 to four.
Despite being the lower seed, FGCU enters play on Thursday with the most wins of any ASUN teams, 21, while dropping just 10 contests. The Eagles were 10-6 in ASUN play in the regular season. Bellarmine comes in 17-13 while navigating its ASUN slate with a record of 11-5.
Thursday's game will feature quite a few players recently honored by the ASUN in the league's postseason awards. Four All-Conference players will be on display: Fleming and
Dylan Penn for Bellarmine and Dunn-Martin (Newcomer of the Year) and Kevin Samuel (Defensive Player of the Year) for FGCU. Bellarmine's
Curt Hopf was named to the ASUN All-Freshmen team.
FAN INFORMATION:
- COVID Protocol: Masks optional (as recommended by Commonwealth of Kentucky)
- Tickets:
- Parking:
