Bison fall to Geneva, 74-66

Andrew Woodley, Sports Information Director

BETHANY, W.Va. (Jan. 25) – The Bethany College men's basketball team was dealt a 74-66 loss by Geneva Wednesday night in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup.

The Bison fall to 7-4 in league play, 12-6 overall, and snaps a six-game winning streak. Meanwhile, the Golden Tornadoes improve to 9-9 overall, 6-5 in the PAC, and complete a season-sweep of Bethany in the process.

Senior guard Antonio Rudolph (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) led the Green & White with 20 points, while junior guard Calique Jones (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) added 12 in the loss. Senior forward Javonte' Trujillo (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) came up just shy of a double-double with nine points and a game-high 10 rebounds (six offensive).

Geneva opened up a 10-2 lead over the first three minutes of the game, prompting a Bethany timeout. The Bison responded with a 15-4 run, capped off by a tip-in by junior forward Liam Davis (Orlando, Fla./Orlando Christian) with 12:04 remaining in the first half, to take a 17-14 lead.

The two squads traded baskets, before a three pointer by junior forward Chris Harris (Brecksville, Ohio/Broadview Heights) propelled Bethany to its largest lead of the game at eight, 29-21, with 5:40 left until halftime. Geneva rallied back to tie the game at 34-34 in the final minute, but a layup by junior guard Andrew Williams (Oil City, Pa./Oil City) sent the Bison into the locker rooms with a 36-34 advantage.

A dunk by Davis to open the second half pushed the lead to four, but the Golden Tornadoes went on to out-score the Bison 22-8 over the next seven minutes to take a 56-46 lead with 13:34 left in the game.

Geneva enjoyed a double-digit lead for the majority of the next 10 minutes. Bethany came within seven, 68-61, with 3:06 remaining in the game, but a three by Jimmy Leichliter a minute later put the Golden Tornadoes up 10 and helped seal the win for the visitors.

Geneva buried 10-of-20 three-point attempts, compared to the 5-for-19 (26 percent) posted by Bethany. The Golden Tornadoes finished the contest 27-for-56 (48 percent) from the field, while the Bison shot 23-for-66 (35 percent).

Bethany held a 42-to-34 edge on the glass, including 21 offensive rebounds, and converted 17 second-chance points in the game.

Leichliter registered a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Golden Tornadoes.

The Bison are back on the court on Saturday, January 28 when they head to New Wilmington, Pennsylvania to take on Westminster at 7:30 p.m.