February 17, 2017
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University men are in position to claim the sixth seed and a berth in the Heartland Conference tournament following a convincing victory over Earlham on Wednesday night. The Beavers will tangle with Hanover on a Senior Day when the 2007 Baseball Team is inducted into the Bluffton University Athletics Hall of Fame.
Six quick points from senior AUSTIN ROHDE (Shelby), including a dunk for Bluffton's first basket of the game, had the Beavers up by a point, 8-7, less than three minutes into the game at AU. TREY ELCHERT (Jackson Center) then hit from distance, knotting the score back up at 11 before Anderson took over. The home team outscored Bluffton 48-23 over the final 16:04 of the first period for a commanding 59-34 spread at the break. AU led by as many as 39 in the second half before a 17-4 spurt by the Beavers made the final score 98-72 as everybody got into the action for the visitors.
Bluffton welcomed Earlham College for the final Wednesday night game of the season in the Sommer Center on February 15. The Beavers have dominated the series recently, winning the past 23 meetings. The home team led from tip to horn, rolling to a 70-56 victory. Rohde had himself a night with 27 points on 9-of-16 from the field, including 4-of-8 from distance. JARED WENTLING(Carey) notched his 6th career double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds. The Beavers are a perfect 14-0 against EC since the Quakers joined the Heartland Conference in 2010-11.
Hanover has ruled the all-time series with a 61-21 mark, including 13 wins in the past 16 meetings. The last Bluffton victory was an instant classic in the Sommer Center on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015. In a game that took three overtimes to declare a winner, Thayne Recker set a Bluffton and Heartland Conference record with 53 points thanks to a 25-of-28 afternoon at the charity stripe! The victory jump-started a Bluffton team that was 4-7 in the conference going into the game. The Beavers won eight of their next nine en route to Bluffton's first-ever trip to the Heartland Conference title game! Hanover took control at Collier Arena back on January 14, using a 23-11 jag over the final eight minutes of the first half on their way to a 77-66 victory in the first matchup this season.
Senior Austin Rohde is currently 14th on the all-time scoring list with 1,257 markers. He is 2nd in the HCAC with 20.4 PPG on 171-of-349 shooting from the field (49.0 percent). Rohde is also 6th in the conference in free throw percentage at 86.1 percent (105-122).
Sophomore Jared Wentling is dropping in 13.8 PPG to go along with his team-high 7.6 RPG (3rd in the HCAC). Second in the Heartland with 4.4 assists per game is senior captain TREY ELCHERT(Jackson Center) who has hit 34-of-39 (87.2 percent) from the line and is scoring 6.9 PPG.
Senior ADAM HOPKINS (Wellington/Keystone) and sophomore JUSTIS DOWDY (Van Wert/Lincolnview) have given the Beavers solid minutes off the bench in the post, combining for 89-of-150 from the field (59.3 FG percentage). Making the most of his opportunity since joining the starting lineup is junior KEVIN CHRISTIE (Dayton/Bishop Fenwick) who has netted at least eight counters in 14 of the last 16 games, including a career-high 16 in Bluffton's win over Earlham.
Bluffton is 3rd in the Heartland Conference in scoring defense at 74.0 PPG and the Beavers 10.8 turnovers per game is 2nd in the HCAC. Their 15.0 assists per game top the conference. Bluffton is currently 4th in the HCAC from the free throw line, knocking down 313-of-422 for 74.2 percent on charity tosses.
The Beavers host a Hanover squad that clinched its first HCAC regular season title since 2004-05 when the Panthers downed Mount St. Joseph 72-64 on the road Wednesday night. Hanover earned the right to host the HCAC Tournament which will kick off on Friday, Feb. 24. The Beavers need a victory over the Panthers on Senior Day to throw their hat in the ring. A Manchester loss to Transylvania, coupled with a Bluffton win over Hanover, would send the Beavers into the tournament for the second time in the past three years.
-BEAVERS-