ANDERSON, Ind. - The Bluffton University men's basketball team dropped a 93-50 decision at Anderson on New Year's Eve. Anderson improved to 6-5 overall with a perfect 4-0 mark in the Heartland Conference. Bluffton fell to 3-8 and 1-3 in the HCAC.

Bluffton fell behind early and Anderson never looked back, leading from start to finish. A Brady Wheeler (Lima/Shawnee) triple pulled Bluffton within 13-6 at the 14:59 mark of the first half. Senior Kegan Owen (Indianapolis, Ind./Greenwood) followed with another Beaver three-ball and the visitors trailed by just six a minute later.

Owen found Cam Rogers (Cincinnati/Christian) for an easy deuce midway through the first half, making it 23-11, but a 30-9 spurt by the Ravens pushed their lead to 53-20 at the break.

A four-minute dry spell to open the second half came to an end when senior Jalen Cromwell (Pickerington/Pickerington Central) nailed a jumper with less than 16 minutes to play. Anderson led by as many as 48 (81-33) with 6:29 on the clock when Ryan Rose (Tipp City/Bethel) got free for a trifecta. 

Cromwell hit 6-of-9 at the stripe en route to a career-high shattering 10 points on Saturday afternoon. He also pulled down a career-best five rebounds. Owen drained a couple threes and led the Beavers with 13 points. Connor Martin (Holland/Springfield) ripped down a game-high eight rebounds.

Bluffton hit 17-of-58 (29.3 percent) from the field, including a paltry 4-for-19 (21.1 percent) outside the arc. Bluffton also struggled to a 12-of-24 (50 percent) afternoon at the stripe. Anderson pulled down 10 more rebounds (45-35) and the visitors turned it over six more times (19-13).

The Beavers will regroup before welcoming long-time rival Defiance College to the Sommer Center on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. Tip-off is slated for 8 p.m. following the women's matchup with the Yellow Jackets.

-BEAVERS-