November 27, 2010
By: Keisha Holtsberry, sports information assistant
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University men's basketball team held off a valiant Kalamazoo College charge to open its 2010-11 campaign with a 4-0 mark, the best start by a Bluffton men's team since the 1965-66 squad opened up 6-0 which was the only other time Bluffton was won more than three games to start a season. The Beavers kept Kalamazoo winless at 0-4 with a 65-62 win over the Hornets.
Four minutes into the game, senior ROB LUDERMAN (Ayersville) sparked the Bluffton offense with a layup. At the 13:08 mark freshman DUSTIN KINN (Alvada/New Riegal) rebounded the ball and found junior MYCHAL HILL (London/Jon. Alder) for a three-pointer. Less than two minutes later sophomore JOSH FISHER (Rockford/Parkway) assisted Hill with another three pointer, leaving the Beavers down by only one.
After several minutes of intense action, two free throws by junior BRENT FARLEY (Lima/ Shawnee) kept the Beavers within striking distance. With 8:33 to play in the half, Heckelman found Hill for another deep ball, stretching the Beaver lead to six with a score of 19-13.
The Beavers took control for much of the last eight minutes of the first half, widening their lead to 32-27 before junior
Mychal Hill added a layup with five ticks left, giving Bluffton a seven-point advantage at halftime.
Luderman made two free throws to start the second half as the Beavers took control over the next 10 minutes, scoring 16 points to Kalamazoo's 10 markers. However, the Hornets would not go quietly and they began to take control of the paint, closing within four points at 50-46. At the 5:52 mark, Farley added two points on an assist from Fisher.
With just 33 seconds remaining, Kalamazoo's Joe Wilson put in a layup to give the Hornets their first lead of the second half (62-61). The Beavers followed suit with a Farley jumper from Hill to give the Beavers a one-point lead. With four seconds to go,
Nate Heckelman gathered a Kalamazoo miss and was fouled. He sank both free throws, giving the Beavers a three-point victory.
Leading the way in the scoring column for Bluffton was junior
Mychal Hill with 16 points, hitting 5-of-11 from the floor. Hill had four triples on just seven tries, accounting for 12 of his 16 points. Freshman WILL POPE (Somerville/Preble Shawnee) and junior
Nate Heckelman pulled down six boards apiece.
Brent Farley,
Josh Fisher and
Nick Lee tallied 15, nine and nine points, respectively. Farley, who blocked three shots, picked up two steals in the contest. Farley, Fisher and Hill all dished out three assists in the victory.
The Hornets received a balanced scoring attack with three players in double digits; Joe Prepolec with 20, Joe Wilson with 12, and Eric Fishman with 12. Ryan Clark pulled down a game-high 11 boards for Kalamazoo. The Beavers outshot the visitors, making 21-of-52 attempts from the field for 40.4 percent. The Hornets hit 25-of-65 attempts for 38.5 percent. Kalamazoo proved more efficient with the ball, only turning it over seven times while forcing 13 miscues by Bluffton. The home team won the battle on the boards (40-32).
The Beavers will be back in action on Wednesday, December 1, when they host Mount St. Joseph. The HCAC lidlifter in Founders Hall is scheduled to tip at 7:30 p.m.
-BEAVERS-