By: Colton Steiner
BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton Beavers would host the Franklin Grizzlies in a head-to-head battle on Copeland Court. A hot start from the Beavers would be the key as they would pull away in the second half en route to a 84-74 victory at home. With the win, the Beavers sit at a record of 4-10 on the season while sitting at a mark of 2-5 in conference play, while Franklin drops to 8-6 overall and 3-3 in the HCAC.
Despite a 7-2 start from the visitors, Bluffton would go on a 6-0 run to take their first lead of the game at 8-7. The two teams would trade buckets until a JD Stokes (West Harrison, Ind. / Franklin County) thunderous throwdown ignited a little run as the Beavers would go up 27-20 following three free throws from Matt Ray (Indianapolis, Ind. / Herron) and a triple from Andre Irvin (Lewis Center, Ohio / Olentangy Orange). With 7:35 left in the first half, Franklin capped off an 8-0 run of their own as they retook the lead 28-27 until six quick points from Bluffton put them up 33-28 with 6:49 left till the break. Both teams would exchange buckets in the final six minutes as the Beavers would hold a 49-46 lead at the half.
Coming out of the break, Franklin would score five straight to take a 51-49 lead until a layup from Nevin Robson (Kenton, Ohio / Hardin Northern) would even up the score with 17:40 left on the clock. After a back-and-forth battle, a triple from Andre Irvin would give Bluffton a two possession lead at 62-58 with 13 minutes remaining. Following a 5-0 run from the Grizzlies that put the visitors up 65-64, the Beavers would respond with an 11-0 run that was capped off with a three from Andre Irvin with 7:27 left in regulation, putting Bluffton up 75-65. That run from the Beavers would be the game changer as Franklin would be unable to respond and cut the deficit, as the home team would stun the visitors with a 84-74 win.
Pacing the Beavers with 20 a piece were Nevin Robson and Andre Irvin. Robson would add seven boards to go along with three assists, while Andre Irvin was an efficient 7-of-10 from the floor including 3-of-4 from downtown. Rounding out the double digit scoring was Ian Snelling (Erlanger, Ky. / Dixie Heights) who tallied 14 while notching team highs with nine boards and four assists.
The stingy Bluffton defense was able to hold Franklin to a 41.9 percent (26-of-62) for the game, while also forcing 14 Grizzly turnovers. While Franklin would knock down 11-of-26 (42.3 percent) of their shots from behind the arc, the Beavers would finish the game with a 45.5 percent mark from the floor. Despite hitting only 5-of-21 (23.8 percent) of their three-point shots, Bluffton would finish the contest going 29-of-39 (74.4 percent) from the charity stripe. The home team would lose the rebounding battle 39-33, but would still dominate the paint with a 36-26 advantage in points down low.
The Beavers will look to build off this win as they will host the Earlham Quakers on Wednesday, Jan. 14 with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m. Come out and support your Beavers!
-Beavers-
