The University of Central Arkansas men's basketball team showed promise early Wednesday night, jumping out to an early lead against Bellarmine and not relinquishing the advantage until seven minutes into the game.
A first-half fire alarm-delay, set off by burned concession stand popcorn, didn't slow the Bears, either. Even when they gave up the lead, they kept the Knights to within 30-25 heading into halftime while limiting Bellarmine's leading scorer, Dylan Penn, to six points.
The Knights went on a seven-point run early in the second half, as Penn eventually found the mark in propelling Bellarmine to a 79-69 win over UCA in front of a crowd of 1,918 at the Farris Center in Conway.
"They've got a really good player in Penn, and in the second half, whenever they needed anything, they just got the ball to him and he made a good play most of the time," UCA Coach Anthony Boone said.
Penn, who averages 16.9 points per game, had a game-high 25 points for Bellarmine (16-11, 10-3 ASUN), scoring 19 in the second half and 10 in the final five minutes. Guard CJ Fleming added 20 for the Knights, scoring seven points on eight free-throw attempts that all came in the final 1:19.
The duo's 45 points made up more than half of their team's scoring.
"I kind of just saw the court spread out," Penn said of his late success. "They kind of just picked us up full court and tried to slow us down, so I was really trying to attack and get to my spot early."
Penn went on a run of his own midway through the second half that saw him make five consecutive field goals come on fast-break and putback layups. Despite the Knights taking control late, Bellarmine Coach Scott Davenport said the UCA (8-17, 5-7) team his squad faced Wednesday night was much improved from the one it beat 85-63 on Jan. 11.
"They are way better," Davenport said. "It's a very well-coached basketball team. You have to beat them. They don't beat themselves. They all play very well from a fundamental standpoint."
Camren Hunter, who came in averaging a team-high 13.6 points per game, scored a game-high 25 points for the Bears. Jared Chatham had his fourth double-double of the season, with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Even as Hunter continued recent success against the Knights, he described the loss as "frustrating."
"They're the type of team where you're down by eight [points], they move the ball so good and so quick, they run their offense to a T, they'll go late into the shot clock, where when you're down by eight, it'll feel like you're down 16."
While it wasn't the Bears' worst outing this season from beyond the arc, they did turn in a dismal 23.8% shooting three-pointers.
"With the way they guard, they kind of give you an outside shot, but not really," Boone said of Bellarmine's defense. "It just seemed like we were hesitant to shoot from outside, and because of that, usually, when you're hesitant to shoot, you're not going to make it."
Jaxson Baker was the lone bright spot for the Bears from the outside, going 3 of 4 from beyond the arc. Beyond Baker, Ibbe Klintman was the only other Bear to make a three-pointer.
Even with the loss, the Bears remain the No. 7 seed for the ASUN Tournament, holding a tiebreaker over Stetson, which they beat 79-75 on Feb. 5.
BELLARMINEMFGFTO-RPFAPTS
Claycomb334-52-20-61211
Hopf262-42-20-3406
Betz374-72-22-72413
Penn3911-192-33-70625
Fleming375-157-80-40120
Tipton182-60-02-4214
DeVault60-50-00-0000
Wieland20-00-00-0000
Team1-2
Totals20028-6115-178-3391479
PCT -- FG 45.9, FT 88.2. 3-PT -- 8-20. 40.0 (Betz 3-4, Fleming 3-9, Penn 1-1, Claycomb 1-2, Tipton 0-1, DeVault 0-3). BL -- 0. TO -- 7 (Penn 3). ST -- 8 (Claycomb 2, Betz 2, Penn 2, Tipton 2).
UCAMFGFTO-RPFAPTS
Kayouloud192-40-00-3024
Chatham327-132-24-132216
Klintman334-80-00-32110
Cooper381-80-00-2452
Hunter3310-175-52-44425
Hall170-11-20-1221
Olowokere121-40-00-3002
Baker163-40-00-2129
Team0-0
Totals20028-598-96-31151869
PCT -- FG 47.5, FT 88.9. 3-PT -- 5-21. 23.8 (Baker 3-4, Klintman 2-6, Chatham 0-1, Kayouloud 0-2, Hunter 0-3). BL -- 3 (Klintman 2). TO -- 11 (Hall 5). ST -- 3 (Baker, Hall, Hunter).
Halftime -- Bellarmine 30, Central Arkansas 25
Officials -- Patterson, Chumley, Davis
Attendance -- 1,918