December 10, 2011

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - Rose-Hulman used an 11-2 run over the final four minutes of the game to knock off Bluffton University 66-55 on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2011. Bluffton's third straight loss dropped the Beavers to 5-3 overall and 1-2 in the Heartland Conference, while Rose improved to 7-1 on the season with a spotless 3-0 mark in the HCAC.

A BRENT FARLEY (Lima/Shawnee) chip shot and two free throws by NATE HECKELMAN(Norwalk) gave the Beavers a quick 4-0 lead. Rose responded with nine straight points to go up 9-4 with 14:28 to play in the first half. Sophomore WILL POPE (Somerville/Preble Shawnee) got free for a couple easy hoops and junior JOSH FISHER (Rockford/Parkway) followed with five straight counters, giving the visitors a 13-11 edge at the 11:33 mark.

With Rose-Hulman leading 23-20 and less than four minutes to play in the opening stanza, the visitors closed the half on a 10-4 run which included five JOSH JOHNSON (Ottawa/Ottawa-Glandorf) tallies and a MYCHAL HILL (London/Jonathan Alder) deep ball at the buzzer.

The Engineers opened period two with four straight points to reclaim the lead before sophomore post DUSTIN KINN (Alvada/New Riegel) hit from in close for a 33-31 Bluffton lead. The Beavers trailed by one with 13:20 to play, but Rose canned back-to-back triples for a 46-39 lead.

Fisher's bucket from distance pulled Bluffton within three (52-49) at the 6:04 mark and it was still a one-possession game (58-55) when Hill buried two charity tosses with just under two minutes on the clock. Eight straight RHIT counters made the final score 66-55 as the Engineers moved to 3-0 in the HCAC.

Leading the Beavers with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting off the bench was Josh Fisher who finished 3-for-6 on treys. He also pulled down four rebounds. Nate Heckelman and Mychal Hill also hit for double figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Heckelman pulled down a team-best seven boards, while he and Hill both dished out three assists.

Bluffton struggled from the field, hitting just 19-of-54 shots for 35.2 percent, compared to the Engineers who connected on 22-of-47 attempts (46.8 percent). The visitors forced RHIT into two  more miscues (13-11), but Rose finished 16-of-21 (76.2 percent) at the stripe (10-of-15 for Bluffton). Bluffton connected on 7-of-15 (46.7 percent) from outside the arc.

The Beavers return to action with another Heartland Conference battle at Transylvania next Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011. The contest is slated for 4 p.m.

-BEAVERS-