LOUISVILLE, Ky. – It is a year of transition—and completed transition—for the Bellarmine University men's basketball team in its 75th season. The Knights have completed a rigorous four-year reclassification process required by the NCAA to ensure that transitioning schools can meet Division I's higher academic and athletic standards while complying with NCAA rules. For the first time with the 2024-25 season, Bellarmine will be eligible for the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship field of 68.
 
The Knights, of course, captured the 2022 Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament championship in just their second season at the Division I level, but were not eligible for into the Big Dance.
 
Fast forward two more completed seasons, and Bellarmine arrives at the dawn of two new eras. The era of full Division I membership is accompanied by a return to the Highlands neighborhood. After four seasons at Freedom Hall, the Knights are back on campus at Knights Hall.
 
The facility, located at 2000 Norris Place, opened in 1960 and hosted the Knights until the COVID-19 pandemic forced a move to the Kentucky Exposition Center for more space ahead of the 2020-21 season. Now, the arena will welcome back the Knights and its fans again for one of the more intimate settings in Division I basketball.
 
With the return of basketball, the space will receive significant upgrades, as well. Bellarmine will complete facility improvements that include a new entertainment space on the stage, a new center-hung scoreboard capable of showing video, a new scorer's table with video capability, and new television monitors in the lobby and terrace level. These improvements will also benefit the women's basketball, volleyball and wrestling teams that call Knights Hall home.
 
WHO'S BACK
Preseason All-ASUN selection Ben Johnson is the lone starter returning from the 2023-24 team. He enters his redshirt junior season after setting career highs last season averaging 13.9 points and connecting on 38.1 percent of his three-point attempts, good for fourth in the ASUN.
 
Forward Curt Hopf missed the entirety of the 2023-24 campaign after suffering an injury just days before the season opener at Washington. The redshirt junior's return will provide both an inside and outside presence for the Knights.
 
Billy Smith is the only returnee who played in all 31 games last season. The guard averaged 5.8 points and was third on the team with 36 made three-pointers is his first year after transferring from Miami (OH).
 
Guard Dezmond McKinney averaged 1.2 steals last year, good for 10th in the ASUN. McKinney also shot 46.8 percent from the field and led Bellarmine with his .905 free throw percentage in his first season with the Knights after coming over from North Dakota State.

Landin Hacker provides an outside threat for Bellarmine. The redshirt junior guard has shot 38.5 percent from deep over his first two years.
 
Redshirt sophomore Zach Reed, another back court option, saw his first collegiate action by appearing in three games last year, scoring as many at eight points. He was a high school teammate of Smith.
 
Guards Kenyon Goodin, AJ Lux, Grant Whitaker and forward Luke Anderson look forward to their first career action this season after redshirting their freshman years.
 
WHO TRANSFERRED IN
Junior Jack Karasinski joins the Knights from William & Mary, where he started the first eight games last year before suffering a season-ending injury. The 6-foot-7 forward averaged 7.1 points and 4.9 rebounds.
 
Dylan Branson, a grad transfer from Southeast Missouri, brings 100 games of backcourt experience to the Knights. Like Karasinski, he missed the bulk of the 2023-24 season with an injury.
 
Junior guard Myles Watkins comes from Pasadena City College, where last year he was named the school's Men's Athlete of the Year for all sports teams. The Frisco, Texas, native averaged 18.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists.
 
WHO'S A FRESHMAN
Three true freshmen have joined Bellarmine. Guard Tyler Doyle helped Lexington Catholic (Ky.) to a pair of 32-3 seasons as a junior and senior. Center Bailey Temming averaged 16.4 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.9 blocks as a senior at Biship Fenwick (Ohio). And finally, Grant Neal led North Oldham (Ky.) averaging 21.8 points and shooting 41.2 percent from distance.
 
WHO'S ON THE DOCKET
The Knights get rolling with an exhibition game against Centre on Tuesday, October 29, at 11 a.m. ET in their unofficial return to Knights Hall. Davenport's bunch then heads to Virginia Commonwealth to open the season on Monday, November 4 before making their return to Knights Hall official by hosting Virginia Military on Saturday, November 9 at 3 p.m. ET.

In all, Bellarmine will take on 13 nonconference opponents and an 18-game ASUN schedule during the 2024-25 season. The nonconference schedule is highlighted by the Knights' annual trip downtown to the KFC Yum! Center to face Louisville (Nov. 19) and a trip to the Rocky Mountains to face Wyoming (Dec. 19) and Colorado (Dec. 21). Colorado will be the second and final power conference opponent on the Knights' regular season schedule.
 
The Knights will also make a trip up I-71 to face Northern Kentucky (Nov. 30) in a matchup of former GLVC foes.
 
New this year is a scheduling alliance between the ASUN and the Southern Conference. As part of that partnership. Bellarmine will host VMI (Nov. 9) and travel to Western Carolina (Dec. 4).
 
ASUN play begins on Jan. 2 at North Alabama. This year, the Knights will face seven repeat opponents: Austin Peay, Eastern Kentucky, FGCU, Jacksonville, Lipscomb, North Florida and Stetson.
 
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