BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University men's basketball team led wire-to-wire as the Beavers manhandled Hiram 73-57 for their first win of the season on Saturday, Nov. 27, 2021. Bluffton moved to 1-3 on the season, while Hiram slipped back under .500 at 2-3 overall.
A 16-6 run to open the game powered Bluffton to a convincing victory over a Terrier squad that had former Beavers coaching it up for the visitors. Former Guy Neal graduate assistant Taylor Roth is now the head coach at Hiram and his lead assistant is Kevin Christie, an All-HCAC performer for the Beavers during his time playing for Coach Neal!
An old-fashioned three-point play by Hiram's Michael Ewart pulled the visitors within a point (26-25) at the 5:29 mark, but Jameel Cosby (Springfield/Kenton Ridge), Trey Clemons (Mainville/Little Miami) and Michael Stammen (Versailles) hit three straight layups to make it a 32-25 spread. Davis followed with a deep triple and cashed in on both attempts from the stripe as Bluffton took a 37-29 lead at the break.
Mike Ketner (Minster) and Cosby dialed long distance to open the second half and when Miguel Ringer (Cincinnati/Cincinnati Christian) picked up a Hiram turnover and took it coast-to-coast, Bluffton had its largest lead of the game at 55-34 with just under 14 minutes to play. The Beaver offense stalled out as Hiram pulled within eight (59-51) at the 6:22 mark, but Ketner pushed it back to 13 when he hit from outside the arc. Davis and Cosby closed out the 16-point victory by going 5-of-6 from the line down the stretch.
Cosby went 10-of-20 from the field for a game-high 25 points and he also led the Beavers with seven rebounds. Ketner finished 7-of-10 from the field for a career-best 17 markers as he hit 3-of-6 from distance. The junior also equaled his career high with four steals. Davis equaled his career high with 15 points thanks to draining 8-of-9 from the line. Stammen dished out three assists and Ringer picked up three steals.
The Beavers were a sparkling 26-of-46 from the field (56.5 percent), including 6-for-16 from outside the arc. Hiram pulled down five more rebounds (30-25), but the Terriers also coughed it up three more times (20-17). The visitors struggled from deep, making only 3-of-19 (15.8 percent) on triples.
Bluffton will play its third straight game in the Sommer Center on Wednesday, Dec. 1, when the Beavers welcome Kalamazoo College for an 8 p.m. tip-off following the women's 6 p.m. matchup with Ohio Wesleyan.
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