By: Colton Steiner
BLUFFTON, Ohio - After suffering a season opener loss to Ohio Northern on Wednesday, the Beavers would tip right back into action as they would play host to the Hiram College Terriers. It a game that went down to the wire, Hiram was able to come out victorious, knocking off Bluffton in a final score of 70-67. With the loss, the Beavers fall to 0-2 to start the season, while the Terriers stay undefeated at 3-0.
After exchanging buckets for the first three and a half minutes, a three from Ian Snelling (Erlanger, Ky. / Dixie Heights) would put Bluffton up 9-7 with 16:36 left in the first half. Andre Irvin (Lewis Center, Ohio / Olentangy Orange) would score five straight points for Bluffton but after leading 14-11, a 9-0 run from Hiram would give the visitors a 20-14 lead with 11 remaining in the half. The Beavers would answer with a run of their own and after back-to-back triples from Justice Thompson (Ashland, Ohio / Crestview), Bluffton found themselves with a 23-20 lead at the 7:56 mark of the first half. Followng the eight minute media timeout, the visitors would close out the half outscoring the Beavers 9-6 to hold a one point, 30-29 lead at the break.
Hiram would open up the second half with a 9-0 run before a jumper from Andre Irvin gave Bluffton it's first second half basket three minutes in to make it 39-31. The two teams would go back and forth, as the Beavers struggled to make it a one possession game for most of the second half, until back-to-back threes from Nevin Robson (Kenton, Ohio / Hardin Northern) pulled Bluffton within three with 4:10 left in regulation. Following a pair of free throws from the visitors, a layup from William Layfield (West Chester, Ohio / Lakota West) and 2-for-2 trip at the charity stripe for Andre Irvin brought the Beavers within one, putting the score at 63-62 with 2:14 left to play. The Terriers would knock down four straight free throws, but Matt Ray (Indianapolis, Ind. / Herron) would connect on a triple from the corner to make it 67-65 in favor of the visitors. While the Beavers would add a pair of free throws from Andre Irvin, they would be unable to mount a comeback in the final minute as Hiram would come away with the 70-67 win over Bluffton.
While the Beavers would hit 10-of-29 (34.5 percent) threes, the Terriers would be more efficient from deep, hitting 47.1 percent (8-of-17) from behind the arc. Bluffton would finish the game hitting 34.9 percent (22-of-63) of their shots from the field, while Hiram would knock down 46.0 percent (23-of-50) of their shots in the contest. Despite Hiram winning the rebounding battle 43-31, steller defense from the Beavers would force 15 turnovers, leading to 14 points.
Leading the charge for Bluffton was Andre Irvin, who was the Beavers only palyer in double figures, scoring 20 with a team-high five assists while going 9-of-10 from the free throw line. Nevin Robson would add nine with eight rebounds, while William Layfield would score seven while dishing out four dimes and snagging a pair of steals. Graduate Ian Snelling added four assists with six rebounds, while Brendan Williams (South Bend, Ind. / Mishawaka) would score nine off the bench.
The Beavers will look ahead at their next opponent as they seek for their first win of the season. They will travel to Heidelberg on Wednesday, Nov. 19, with game time set for 8 p.m.
-Beavers-