By GREG MENGELT

LOUISVILLE — Defending Atlantic Sun champion Liberty handed Bellarmine its second conference loss of the season, 66-53 at Freedom Hall on Saturday.

The game was tied at 25-apiece at halftime but Liberty got hot the in second half, while Bellarmine stayed cold the entire night. The Flames held Bellarmine to 35.1 percent shooting (20 for 57) and the Knights managed to make just five of their 22 3-point attempts in the loss.

Liberty outscored the Knights 41-28 in the second half to improve to 16-7 overall and 7-1 in the A-Sun. The Flames have won eight of their last nine games. Bellarmine is now 13-10 overall and a half-game behind the Flames at 7-2 in conference play.

Senior guard CJ Fleming was just 4 for 15 from the field but led the Knights with 14 points. Senior forward Ethan Claycomb added 11 points and former Providence standout Juston Betz finished with six points, six rebounds and a pair of assists.

It’s only the fourth time this season someone other than senior guard Darius McGhee has led the Flames in scoring. This time it was junior forward Shiloh Robinson, who finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds. McGhee finished with 13. Four different Flames scored in double figures.

Bellarmine will host another A-Sun contest at Freedom Hall on Saturday when its hosts Kennesaw State (9-13, 4-5) at 7 p.m. The game will be aired on ESPN Plus.