LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Drury got the start they wanted at sixth-ranked Bellarmine as they jumped out to a 10-2 lead early, but the Knights put together a 19-0 run in the first half and held off the Panthers for an 82-62 win on Thursday at Knights Hall in Louisville, Kentucky.
 
The loss halted Drury's seven-game winning streak, dropped them to 12-3 and 5-2 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. Bellarmine extended their home court winning streak to 53 games, the longest such streak in Division II men's basketball. They improved to 16-1 and 7-1 in the league.
 
The Panthers owned an 18-16 lead with 10:35 left in the first half when the Knights reeled off 19 unanswered points that put Drury in a 35-18 hole with 3:32 remaining before intermission. The Panthers fought back to close the gap to nine, 42-33, at the break.
 
A 9-0 run by Bellarmine early in the second half, however, gave the Knights a 16 point lead with 13:36 left and they held off Drury down the stretch.
 
"Hats off to Bellarmine," said Drury head coach Steve Hesser. "Their team is outstanding, and they are very well coached.
 
"I'm proud of our guys with the way we closed out the first half and were able to come back to get within nine at halftime. In the second half, Bellarmine did a good job of moving, cutting and they just broke our defense down."
 
All five Bellarmine starters scored in double-figures as Chivarsky Corbett and Brent Bach each led with 15 points. Adam Eberhard had 11 points and 10 assists for the Knights.
 
Andrew Ballock scored a game-high 16 points for Drury on 6 of 8 shooting while Kolbe Kinghorn added 12 points. 
 
Bellarmine shot 55 percent from the field knocking down 29 of their 53 shots and were 19 of 22 from the foul line. Drury connected on a season-low 38 percent going 23 for 61 and 12 for 33 from three-point range. The Panthers were 4 for 6 from the free throw line.
 
Drury travels to Indianapolis for a game on Saturday afternoon against the Greyhounds. Tipoff is at 2 p.m. (central) in Indianapolis, Indiana.
 
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