Three Ball leads Men's Basketball Past Bellarmine Saturday Afternoon

Saturday, January 6

Louisville, KY

3:00 PM

Lipscomb University

10-7,1-1ASUN

Bellarmine

4-13,0-2ASUN

Team	1	2	F
Lipscomb	39	42	81
Bellarmine	28	42	70

Three Ball leads Men's Basketball Past Bellarmine Saturday Afternoon

1/6/2024 5:03:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Final Score – Lipscomb: 81, Bellarmine: 70
Location – Louisville, Ky. (Freedom Hall)
Records – Lipscomb: 10-7 (1-1, ASUN), Bellarmine: 4-13 (0-2, ASUN)

THE SHORT STORY
Lipscomb led for nearly 38 minutes of the game as Joe Anderson's 19 points led Lipscomb to an 81-70 victory over Bellarmine Saturday afternoon for the squad's first ASUN victory of the season.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The game was a back-and-forth affair early as the Bisons held a slight 9-8 advantage at the first media timeout.

Great defense leads to spectacular offense ??#IntoTheStorm ?? l #HornsUp ?? pic.twitter.com/PUH76kBXca
— Lipscomb Men's Basketball (@LipscombMBB) January 6, 2024

Lipscomb was firing at a 60% clip and making big shots, but couldn't pull away early as the Knights would punch back after each big bucket that the Bisons would make.

Too much space for Willy P #IntoTheStorm ?? | #HornsUp ?? pic.twitter.com/q7bUUQWf6r
— Lipscomb Men's Basketball (@LipscombMBB) January 6, 2024

Lipscomb, however, kept its slight advantage with a 16-14 lead with 11:41 to go in the second half as the whistle blew for a media timeout.

The Bisons locked in over the next minutes and utilized a 6-0 run before the under-eight media timeout, capped off by a traditional three-point play by Cody Head, to open a 25-17 advantage for a little separation.

AND ONE ??#IntoTheStorm ?? | #HornsUp ?? pic.twitter.com/PUJbWy4GKS
— Lipscomb Men's Basketball (@LipscombMBB) January 6, 2024

The run continued with a pair of defensive stops and a midrange jumper by Will Pruitt and triple from Joe Anderson, quickly opening a 30-17 lead for the Bisons. The series forced a Bellarmine timeout with 6:28 to play in the first half.

Dagger ??#IntoTheStorm ?? | #HornsUp ?? pic.twitter.com/a3GGHxSZKw
— Lipscomb Men's Basketball (@LipscombMBB) January 6, 2024

Out of the timeout, Bellarmine punched back with a 7-0 run of its own, cutting Lipscomb lead back down 30-26 before AJ McGinnis nailed a triple to get the Bisons out of its scoreless slump.

Anderson kept Lipscomb's hot streak from beyond the arc with another trey and the Bisons took a 36-28 lead into the final two minutes of the first frame.

In the final minute of action in the half, Anderson was a one-man wrecking crew on defense, blocking a shot and then forcing a steal that resulted in a triple for Pruitt. The sequence pushed the Bisons to a 39-28 lead at the halftime break.

OKAY JOE#IntoTheStorm ?? | #HornsUp ?? pic.twitter.com/1w6MyaH68y
— Lipscomb Men's Basketball (@LipscombMBB) January 6, 2024

Bellarmine got out to a quick start out of halftime with a 5-0 run, shaving Lipscomb lead 39-33 before McGinnis got the Bisons on the board with his third triple of the afternoon.

The Bisons got back out to a double-digit lead when Owen McCormack completed an and-one opportunity out of the under-16 media timeout for a 49-39 advantage.

Lipscomb got out to as much as a 60-48 advantage when Derrin Boyd cashed in on a three-pointer, but Bellarmine cut the lead back down to 10-points, 60-50, with just under 11 minutes to play.

Deebo in on the 3 ball action#IntoTheStorm ?? | #HornsUp ?? pic.twitter.com/blzq7Zo7ex
— Lipscomb Men's Basketball (@LipscombMBB) January 6, 2024

The three-ball continued to fall, getting the Bisons lead back out to double-digits. Anderson nailed Lipscomb's 13^th three-pointer of the night, pushing Lipscomb to a 71-59 advantage with 7:11 to play, forcing a Knights timeout.

JOE. ANDERSON. #IntoTheStorm ?? | #HornsUp ?? pic.twitter.com/2g6K7QeXIo
— Lipscomb Men's Basketball (@LipscombMBB) January 6, 2024

The Knights, however, wouldn't go away as a 6-0 run, shaved the lead back down to single digits, 75-67 with 3:59 left on the clock.

Lipscomb locked down and executed down the stretch on both ends of the court and saw out an 81-70 victory over the Knights for its first ASUN victory of the young conference season.

HERD NOTES

Anderson led all scorers with 19 points, making a career-high five three-pointers. He also dished out seven assists with three rebounds.
Other double-digit scorers included McGinnis and Boyd, both with 14 points.
Pruitt led all rebounders with 10 on the afternoon.
The Bisons finished the matchup with 14 triples, shooting over 42-percent from beyond the arc.
Lipscomb shot 47.5-percent from the field to Bellarmine's 46.6-percent.
The Bisons won the rebounding battle 36-27, including 10 offensive boards.

UP NEXT
Lipscomb will return to Allen Arena Saturday, Jan. 13 for a tilt with Austin Peay. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. CT.