FLORENCE, Ala. -- Bellarmine Knights men's basketball opened up ASUN conference play in the 2024-25 season with an 82-66 road loss to the North Alabama Lions.  With the result, the Knights fall to 3-11 overall.

It was a slow start offensively for the Knights, whose first four possessions resulted in two turnovers and two missed shots en route to an early 9-0 hole.  Jack Karasinski got Bellarmine on the board with a layup at the 16:05 mark, but UNA responded with six more unanswered points to take a 15-2 lead.  Bellarmine was unable to find their offensive footing early on and the Lions kept the Knights at arms' length for much of the first half as a result, extending their early lead to as high as 15 at 32-17.  The three-point shot began to fall for Bellarmine in the last few minutes of the first half as four consecutive makes from the outside from four different Knights created a 12-6 Knights run that got the Lions' lead down to single digits at 38-29 going into halftime.

Bellarmine's offense stalled again for much of the first part of the second half, allowing UNA to rip off an 18-4 run that spanned the first eight and a half minutes of the period, giving them their largest lead of the game at 56-33.  Karasinski got the offense going again, hitting a putback in the lane off of a pass from Ben Johnson and converting on an and-one opportunity to spark a 20-8 Knights run that also saw two layups from Dezmond McKinney and two three-pointers from Billy Smith, trimming the deficit back down to 11 with 6:22 to play.  Bellarmine was unable to get any closer however, as the offense hit another cold streak and a subsequent 14-6 UNA run essentially put the game away.

Smith led the Knights on offense with 16 points, his 10th double digit scoring output in 14 games this season.  Karasinski scored 11 points to go along with five rebounds.  Landin Hacker scored 10 points, his highest scoring output against a Division I opponent this season, on 3-of-4 shooting from the field, including 2-of-3 from three-point range.  Curt Hopf led the team on the glass, grabbing seven rebounds, while AJ Lux set a new career high with six rebounds.  Johnson contributed with seven points and a team-high five assists.

Despite the loss, Bellarmine outscored UNA 6-2 in fast break points and 26-6 in points off the bench.

Up next, the Knights will conclude their four-game road stretch against another ASUN opponent, taking on the Central Arkansas Bears in Conway, Ark. on Saturday, January 4.  Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.

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