BLUFFTON, Ohio - It was a war for 40 minutes, but Franklin scored seven straight at the end for an 82-78 victory over the Bluffton men on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024. The Beavers fell to 4-9 overall and 0-6 in the Heartland Conference, while Franklin upped its mark to 6-7 and 4-2 in the HCAC.

Back-to-back triples by Cam Rogers (Cincinnati/Christian) and Ian Snelling (Erlanger, Ky./Dixie Heights) followed by a Snelling deuce put the home team up 15-8 at the 13:37 mark of the first half. It was still seven when Connor Martin (Holland/Springfield) got to the rack and Stammen dialed long distance with 10:20 on the clock.

The visitors used a 19-11 run to take a 34-33 lead inside of three minutes, but Nevin Robson (Kenton/Hardin Northern) scored six points late in the half, including four over the final 42 seconds, as Bluffton went to the break tied up at 39 apiece.

A Snelling bomb followed by a hoop and harm for Robson gave the Beavers their largest lead of the game (59-51) with 10:13 to play. Franklin scored seven straight, but an old-fashioned three-point play from Stammen made it 62-58 with less than eight minutes to play. It was a two-point game when Josh Crall (Bucyrus/Wynford) drilled a trifecta at the 5:31 mark.

Rogers found Snelling for another triple and Snelling buried a pair of freebies giving Bluffton a 74-69 spread at the three-minute mark. With Bluffton clinging to a one-point lead, Snelling stepped to the line and converted two more charity tosses. His layup had Bluffton up by three again, but a three-point play for the Grizzlies knotted it up with just over a minute to play. Franklin continued to take advantage at the line, going 4-of-4 over the final 21 seconds, while the Beavers missed all three of their field goal attempts as FC scored an 82-78 victory on Saturday afternoon.

Snelling was on fire, hitting 11-of-20 from the field, including 4-of-9 outside the arc, en route to a career-high 32 points! Martin ripped down a game-high 13 rebounds and just missed a double double with eight points and four blocks. Robson was a perfect 4-of-4 from the field and 3-for-3 at the line, tallying 11 points. Stammen and Rogers dished out four assists apiece.

Bluffton finished a superb 29-of-55 from the field (52.7 percent), including 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) beyond the arc. The Beavers ripped down seven more rebounds (35-28) but the home team doubled up Franklin with 18 turnovers to just nine for the Grizzlies. Franklin made hay with 26 points off those miscues.

The Bluffton men will travel to rival Defiance College for an 8 p.m. tip-off with the Yellow Jackets on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024.

-BEAVERS-