By: Jordon Bruner, sports information assistant
January 13, 2007
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University men's basketball team shot 52 percent from the field on its way to a 94-83 victory over Hanover College on January 13, 2007. The win moves the Beavers to 13-3 overall and 5-2 in the Heartland Conference. The Panthers fell to 9-7 overall and 4-3 in HCAC play following the loss.
Senior ERIC SCHWEITERMAN (St. Henry/St. Henry) knocked down a trey five minutes into the game to give the Beavers an early 11-4 lead.
Hanover tied the game at 13-13 when a jumper by MARC O'LEARY capped an 11-2 run by the Panthers over a three-minute period mid-way through the first half.
Two minutes later, BROCK DAWSON, who lit up the Beavers with 34 points off the bench in Founders a year ago, converted a three-point play to give the Panthers a 20-17 advantage.
Bluffton then scored on its next seven possessions as its 14-3 run gave the Beavers a 31-23 lead with just over six minutes left in the half. AARON TAYLOR (Antwerp/Antwerp) and MIKE ANTHONY (Ohio City/Delphos St. Johns) combined for ten points during that stretch.
The Beavers went into the break with a 51-42 lead, despite the scoring onslaught by Hanover's Dawson and DESMOND JORDAN who combined for 15 points over the last five minutes of the opening stanza.
NICK WILSON (Payne/Continental) finished the first half with a near double-double as the sophomore dropped in 11 points and pulled down nine boards in the first 20 minutes of play. Taylor added 10 points for the Beavers who shot an incredible 62 percent from the field.
Dawson dialed up from downtown just seconds into the second half to cut the Bluffton lead to 51-45. The Beavers then used the next two minutes to erase any ideas of a second half collapse, going on a 9-4 run to grab a 60-49 lead.
Hanover continued to fight back throughout much of the second half, but the Panthers could not pull closer than five points. Much of this was due to Anthony, who poured in 22 of his career-high 29 points in the second half while becoming the 25th player in Bluffton University men's basketball history to reach the 1,000 career points milestone.
Bluffton used great free throw shooting down the stretch to seal the victory. The Beavers shot 17-of-19 from the charity stripe over the last six minutes of the game.
Anthony grabbed nine boards to go along with his game-high 29 points, while COLT CUNNINGHAM (Powell/Worthington Christian) chipped in with 15 points. Wilson, making his first start as a Beaver, recorded his first career double-double as he knocked down 16 points to go along with his game-high 13 rebounds and two blocks. Taylor added 10 points in the victory.
Bluffton travels to the College of Mt. St. Joseph on Wednesday, January 17, 2007, to face the Lions (5-2 HCAC) who are currently tied with the Beavers and Transylvania for first place in the Heartland Conference. Tip-off in Cincinnati is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
-BEAVERS-