Bellarmine wins ASUN, denied basketball tourney bid due to NCAA rule

March 9 (UPI) -- Like other conference tournament champions, Bellarmine's men's basketball team was elated to win a title. But unlike the other conference winners, the Knights didn't secure a March Madness bid due to an NCAA rule.

The Knights beat the Jacksonville Dolphins 77-72 in the ASUN conference tournament finale Tuesday at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Ky.

The ASUN's automatic bid to the 2022 Division I men's basketball tournament, however, went to Jacksonville State, who won the regular-season title. The Knights were not eligible for an automatic tournament bid because they are in the second year of a four-year transition into Division I.

They are the first men's team in more than two decades to win its respective conference tournament while ineligible for the postseason. Jacksonville would have clinched a spot in the tournament with a victory.

"We've made it a point to control what we can control, and that's it," Bellarmine senior guard Juston Betz told reporters. "We'll continue to be in the moment and never take for granted where we are."

Bellarmine guard C.J. Fleming scored a game-high 27 points in the win. Dylan Penn chipped in 22 points, six rebounds and four assists for the Knights. Betz recorded eight points and nine rebounds.

The Knights (20-13) outshot the Dolphins 50% to 44.8% and made 48% of their 3-pointers and 88.2% of their free throws in the victory. They also out-rebounded the Dolphins 27-17 and led by as many as 18 points.

Jordan Davis led the Dolphins (21-10) with 22 points in the loss.

Jacksonville State will find out its first-round NCAA tournament foe through the Selection Show, which airs at 6 p.m. EST Sunday on CBS.