The Bluffton University men's basketball team traveled to host Transylvania University to take on the Anderson University Ravens in the opening game of the Heartland Conference tournament on Friday, Feb. 28.
It was a neck and neck game throughout, but unfortunately the Beavers were on the wrong end of a 77-68 defeat. Bluffton finished the season at 15-11 overall, while Anderson improved to 14-12. The Ravens advanced to the HCAC semi-finals against tournament host Transylvania at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 29.
Bluffton jumped out to a 13-6 lead when Dezman Brown (Elyria) knocked down one down from three-point land with 13:02 left in the first half. The Beavers would extend their lead to nine (17-8) with another Brown jumper that gave Bluffton its largest lead of the game. But, the Ravens would climb back to notch it at 19 apiece when Malik Laffoon hit from distance with 6:52 left on the clock. Thanks to a Jameel Cosby (Springfield/Kenton Ridge) layup with 44 seconds remaining in the first half, Bluffton took a 36-32 lead into the break.
Anderson stormed back, taking an early second half lead when Maurice Knight would drilled a triple to make it 40-38 in favor of the Ravens with just under 17 minutes to play. After trailing for a few minutes, Bluffton came back and took a 48-47 lead when Aaron Rich (Greenville) knocked down a jumper with 11:35 on the scoreboard.
It would be back and forth from there, but Anderson opened its largest lead when Larry Johnson dropped a deuce to make it 63-57 with five minutes to go in the contest. Bluffton would not be able to slow down the Raven attack, seeing its season come to an end with a 77-68 loss.
Four Beavers scored in double figures with Cosby leading the way thanks to 18 points on 7-of-13 from the field and 4-of-8 from the charity stripe. He also pulled down four rebounds. Brown netted 16 of his own on 7-of-12 from the field, including 2-of-6 from distance. He also dished out a team-high five assists in the loss. Renner and Zeddie Pollock (Mogodore) both bucketed 10 points in the loss.
Bluffton hit 28-of-65 (43.1 percent) from the field, including 4-of-19 (21.1 percent) from outside the arc. Anderson turned the ball over 17 times, one more than the Beavers. Bluffton pulled down 33 rebounds, compared to 24 for the Ravens.
Women's results
The Bluffton University women's basketball team saw its 2019-20 season come to an end when the #11 Transylvania University Pioneers rolled to a 74-45 victory in the Heartland Conference tournament semi-finals on Saturday, Feb. 29.
Bluffton finished with a 14-13 mark, while Transy improved to 24-2 and will face the winner of Franklin and Hanover at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday for the automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament.
A Brianna Gillig (New Riegel) layup midway through the first period had the Beavers within six (12-6) before an 8-2 run for the home team made the score 20-8 with just over a minute to play in the quarter. Sammy Shardo (Findlay/Liberty Benton) closed the gap to 10 with a pair of free throws but Ashton Woodard drained a three with nine ticks remaining to make it 23-10 going into the second stanza.
With Bluffton struggling to find the bottom of the net in the second, Transylvania pushed its lead to 42-16 with just over three minutes to play in the first half. Tj Mills (Dayton/Chaminade-Julienne) hit a jumper before Emma Saltzman (Arcadia) and Gillig combined to score seven points late in the half as Bluffton pulled within 44-25 at the break.
Peyton Henry (Leipsic) dialed long distance with 5:33 to play in the third quarter, pulling Bluffton within 13 (51-38) for the first time since the opening period. However, the Pioneers responded with a 15-2 jag to close out the third with a commanding 66-40 advantage.
Transy's lead grew to as many as 32 before the home team pulled the plug on its way to a 74-45 victory that ended Bluffton's season in the conference semi-finals.
Gillig led the Beavers with 15 points and seven rebounds. Mills record-breaking career came to an end with 13 markers. Saltzman and Nora Hemminger (McComb) both ripped down six boards in the season finale.
