By: Brandy Bidlack, sports information assistant
December 15, 2007
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University men's basketball team used its superior depth to wear down Adrian College on Saturday, Dec. 15, 2007. The Beavers used a 24-5 jag over the last 7:17 of the game to pull away for an 89-63 victory over Adrian College. The starters for Bluffton combined to play just over half the contest as the Beavers improved to 6-3 while the Bulldogs fell to 4-3 on the season.
Senior P.J. JUENGER (Loveland/Archbishop Moeller) hit a trey on Bluffton's first possession of the game to give Bluffton an early 3-2 lead. Adrian rolled off eight consecutive points beforeAARON TAYLOR (Antwerp/Antwerp) chipped in five straight to even the score at 10 with just under 14 minutes to play in the opening half.
NATE OVERMEYER (Payne/Wayne Trace) put the Beavers back on top with a bucket from behind the arc. Using an assist from JOSH EICHAR (North Baltimore/North Baltimore), freshman ROB LUDERMAN (Defiance/Ayersville) added two more points for Bluffton at the 10-minute mark.
The Bulldogs pulled ahead with a layup by RYAN GALLUS and the Beavers trailed for the next six minutes until Josh Eichar and Aaron Taylor both went 2-for-2 at the charity stripe to put Bluffton on top, 38-35, with three minutes to play in the half. Eichar turned the ball over with five seconds left in the period, but he grabbed the ensuing inbounds pass at midcourt and buried a deep three-ball to give Bluffton a 43-37 lead at the break.
A layup by NICK WILSON (Continental/Continental) and two points from P.J. Juenger ignited the Beavers early in the second half. COLT CUNNINGHAM (Powell/Worthington Christian) knocked down a shot from behind the arc to up the Bluffton lead to 55-47. A steal by Nate Overmeyer allowed Eichar to drive to the hole for another easy hoop.
A jump shot from JORDAN POTHAST (Ottawa/Ottawa-Glandorf) increased the Beavers' lead to 78-60 at the 4:10 mark. BEN SHINDELDECKER (Ohio City/Crestview) fed Rob Luderman and JOEL MILLER (Sugarcreek/Berlin Hiland) came off a screen and buried a long triple with 1:23 on the clock, making it a 27-point advantage for the Beavers. A CAM SAYLOR (Belle Center/Benjamin Logan) drive finished off the Bulldogs, making the final score 89-63 in favor of the home team.
Aaron Taylor led the Beavers with 19 points on a dazzling 8-of-9 shooting performance from the field. He also pulled down a team-high six rebounds. Josh Eichar contributed a career-high 13 points, five assists, five rebounds, and two steals against the Bulldogs. Colt Cunningham also had 13 points, while P.J. Juenger, who was playing in front of his Bluffton Middle School class from student teaching, chipped in 12 points, six of which came on a pair of first half treys. Nate Overmeyer added seven points and two steals. Nick Wilson and Zack Kraus each finished with five points, while Jordan Pothast chipped in four points and Joel Miller had one trifecta. Cam Saylor and JUSTIN RUFENACHT (Wauseon/Pettisville) rounded out the scoring with two points each.
Junior IAN WEBER paced Adrian with a 18 points and 10 rebounds for the game's only double-double. He was a perfect 9-for-9 from the field. DESMOND YOUNG and Ryan Gallus also hit for double digits with 14 and 12 points, respectively.
Bluffton finished the game 32-for-56 (57.1 percent) from the field, including 7-for-14 (50 percent) from behind the three-point arc. The Beavers shot 75 percent (18-of-24) at the free throw line, compared to the Bulldogs who made only 7-of-15 attempts for 46.7 percent. The Bulldogs won the battle on the boards (37-27), but Adrian turned the ball over 21 times, compared to 16 miscues by the home team.
The Beavers return to action on Tuesday, Dec. 18, when they travel to face Kalamazoo. The game is slated to start at 7:30 p.m.
-BEAVERS-