By: Joseph Watkins, sports information assistant
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University men's basketball team played host to the Rose-Hulman Engineers in a Heartland Conference clash on Saturday, Dec. 14. Despite Bluffton hanging in for the majority of the game, the Engineers pulled away late to take down the Beavers, 76-61. Bluffton slipped to 4-4 overall and 1-2 in the Heartland Conference, while RHIT improved to 3-6 overall and 1-2 in the HCAC.
Although Bluffton found themselves in an early 7-2 hole, they did not give in and climbed back to knot it at 7-7 all when Andrew Renner (Cairo/Bath) knocked down a jumper with 13 minutes left in the first half. It would be back and forth most of the afternoon, but the Engineers used a late rally to seal the deal (76-61).
After falling in an early 7-2 hole, Bluffton rattled off the next seven points to take a 9-7 lead when Aaron Rich (Greenville) knocked down a pair of free throws. After a back and forth rest of the half, the Beavers would take the lead again on a Rich layin that made it 28-27 with 1:11 left in the first half. The Engineers responded with a layup, making the score 29-28 in favor of Rose at the break.
A jumper by John Czarnecki made the score 46-36 Engineers with 14:06 left to play. But, the Beavers fought back to tie it at 48 apiece when Isaiah Taylor (Yellow Springs) got to the rack with just under 10 minutes to play. After coming all the way back from down 10, things started to unravel for the Beavers as the home team suffered a disappointing 76-61 defeat.
Sophomore Jameel Cosby (Springfield/Kenton Ridge) paced the Beavers with 21 points on 8-of-12 from the field and 2-of-6 from behind the arc. Renner and Brown both notched 14 points on a combined 5-of-23 from the field and 1-of-6 from distance. Rich led the Beavers with seven rebounds.
Bluffton hit 19-of-57 (33.3 percent) from the field, including 6-of-19 (31.6 percent) from outside the arc. The Engineers turned the ball over 15 times, compared to Bluffton's eight miscues. The visitors dominated on the glass with 15 more rebounds (43-28) than the Beavers.
Bluffton will be back in action on Saturday, Dec. 28, against Otterbein College in the annual McDonald's of Bluffton Holiday Classic. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m.
-BEAVERS-
