The Bellarmine Knights are gearing up for a big home stand in the ASUN Conference, as they welcome Kennesaw State and Jacksonville State to Freedom Hall this Thursday and Saturday.
The Kennesaw State Owls are no slouches, rolling in with a 7-game winning streak and a 9-1 record in conference play. The balanced attack is led by junior guard Chris Youngblood, who is putting up 14.4 points per game and ranks seventh in the league in 3-pointers made. The 6-6 junior Brandon Stroud is another player to watch out for, as he leads the team in rebounding and has already earned two ASUN Player of the Week awards this season.
Terrell Burden, a 5-10 senior guard, adds 12.2 points per game and leads the team in assists. Down low, 6-8 Demond Robinson provides a powerful presence in the paint, with an average of 10.5 points and 5.7 rebounds.
Jacksonville State, last year’s ASUN regular season champion, enters the week playing their best basketball of the season, fresh off a Tennessee sweep of Lipscomb and Austin Peay. The Gamecocks are led by Demaree King and Skyelar Potter, who both rank in the top five in the ASUN for 3-pointers made. King averages 14.6 points and has made 69 of 168 triples, while Potter puts up 13.6 points a game and has made 58 of 151 from beyond the arc. The team also boasts a top rebounder in the league in 6-6 Juwan Perdue, whose 6.9 rebounding average ranks fifth in the ASUN.
Despite battling the injury bug, Bellarmine’s freshman Peter Suder was able to shake off a recent sprained ankle to earn ASUN Newcomer of the Week honors last week. The 6-5 Suder turned in his first collegiate double-double in Thursday’s win over Eastern Kentucky and followed up with 10 points, six rebounds, and five assists in Saturday’s game against the Colonels.
The Bellarmine scoring leader, Garrett Tipton, is putting up 12.4 points per game and coming off a solid week after hitting the game-winner in Thursday’s game and scoring 17 points on Saturday. Graduate student Juston Betz continues to lead the team in assists and rebounds, dishing out 3.3 assists and hauling 5.2 rebounds per game. He’s also the team leader in steals, averaging 1.4 per game.
It’s sure to be a big weekend for the Bellarmine Knights as they look to defend their home court against two tough ASUN opponents. Get ready for some high-flying, hard-nosed basketball action!
