By Ryan Schadewald
The Mount St. Joseph Lions used a 16-3 run to open the game en route to a 70-64 victory over the Bluffton University men’s basketball team on Wednesday, Jan. 30. The visitors fell to 9-11 on the season, 5-8 in Heartland Conference play.
The Beavers slipped to seventh in the conference, moving to the outside of the HCAC Tournament picture with just five games remaining. MSJ not only went ahead of Bluffton, but the Lions (7-13, 6-7 HCAC) now hold an important head-to-head tie-breaker over the Beavers by virtue of their season sweep.
Bluffton’s Dustin Kinn (Alvada/New Riegel) began the game with a deuce to give the Beavers a 2-0 lead. The Lions then put up 16 of the next 17 points to take a 16-3 lead at the 13:59 mark of the first half.
The Beavers answered with an 8-2 spurt of their own. Thayne Recker (Arlington) began the run with a layup, followed by deuces from Nate Chambers (Miamisburg) and Recker, and a couple Kinn free throws, cutting the home team’s lead to 18-11 at the 11:09 mark.
The Beavers were able to cut the lead down to two points late in the first half on a couple Recker chip shots and a tip-in from Ryan Ebbeskotte (Fort Jennings/Delphos Jefferson). A three-ball by David Mann put Mount St. Joseph up 32-27 at the half.
Mount St. Joseph was able to stretch the lead to eight points to start the second half. After a layup by Kinn, the Lions went on a 5-0 run to extend their lead to 37-29 at the 17:51 mark of the second half.
Both teams continued to battle back and forth throughout the second period with the Lions maintaining a 6-to-10 point spread through the first 12 minutes of the second half.
Mount St. Joseph led 52-42 at the 10:24 mark, when the Beavers decided to make a run. Josh Fisher (Rockford/Parkway) scored seven straight points for the visitors which cut the MSJ lead to seven.
Billy Taflinger (Lima/Central Catholic) followed with a fastbreak layup, making it 58-53 at the 7:00 mark of the second half.
After a pair of freebies by Travis Combs for the Lions, Will Pope (Somerville/Preble Shawnee) added a deuce and Fisher made a free throw to cut the Lion lead to four with 5:32 left in the game.
After three straight points for the Mount, Kinn drained a jumper in the paint and Pope was able to tip in an offensive rebound which cut the deficit to one point with 54 seconds remaining.
However, David Mann locked the game up with a clutch triple and 66-62 lead. His make led to plenty of fouling and free throws as MSJ sealed the sweep with a 70-64 victory.
The Beavers were led by senior Josh Fisher, who scored 18 points on 6-of-13 from the field and 6-for-9 at the charity stripe.
Dustin Kinn chipped in 14 points, hitting 5-for-6 from the floor. Will Pope added 12 points and seven boards in a losing effort. Mount St. Joseph was led by David Mann who scored 24 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
Both teams shot 49 percent from the floor. Bluffton was 0-for-5 from beyond the arc, while Mount St. Joseph hit 4-for-16 (25 percent).
However, the Beavers shot only 55.2 percent (16-for-29) from the charity stripe, while the Lions converted 84.2 percent (16-of-19). The Beavers finished with a 32-24 edge on the glass.
Bluffton will be back in action on Saturday, Feb. 2, when the Beavers travel to Anderson, Ind. The men are slated to play at 4 p.m. following the women’s game at 2 p.m.
The Beavers will be back home next Saturday, Feb. 9, as they welcome Hanover at 3 p.m. in the Sommer Center.
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