Men's Basketball: Harriers edge Bison

DEFIANCE, Ohio – The Bethany College men's basketball team faced Miami-Hamilton in the opening round of the Defiance Purple and Gold Tournament Friday evening. The Harriers edged the Bison 93-88.

GAME FLOW

• The Harriers opened the game with a 7-0 lead. Freshman Will Brooks nailed a three to lift the scoring lid for the Bison. After a layup and a three by the Bison they cut the lead, 9-8. Over the next eight minutes, the Bison and Harriers battled back and forth keeping the game close.
• Miami-Hamilton would take a double-digit lead with 4:22 to go in the first half. The Bison continued to stampede back. A pair of Troy Hixson free-throws cut the lead to six. A Brooks layup brought the Bison within four and a pair of Cole Dailey free throws brought Bethany within two, 46-44 heading into the halftime break.
• The second half opened up with each team exchanging buckets. Each time the Bison would get within two, the Harriers were able to answer with buckets of their own. With 11:14 left, Colin Meany knotted the game at 64-64 with a three-pointer.
• With 9:50 left in the game, freshman Blake Kahnell gave Bethany their first lead of the second half. The lead was short lived as the Harriers continued to hit big shots at the right moment.
• In the final minute, the Bison kept battling. Cole Dailey made a layup followed by another layup on the next possession. Bethany trailed 87-83 with 54 seconds to go. With ten seconds left, Will Brooks drained a three and as time expired, Dailey laid one in.
• The Bison fell to the Harriers  93-88.

IN THE BOX SCORE

• Sophomore Cole Dailey led the Bison with 19 points while shooting 7-for-15 from the field. He added six rebounds and a team-high six assists.
• Freshman Will Brooks contributed 17 points while pulling down eight boards. He had two blocks.
• Junior Chance Wells had 15 points, while shooting 6-for-10 from the field. He had five assists and two steals.
• Off the bench, freshmen Colin Meany and Blake Kahnell added nine and seven points respectfully. Meany added four assists.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Both teams shot lights out with Miami-Hamilton shooting 55.4 percent. Bethany shot 50.0%.
• The Harriers shot 55 percent from behind the arc.
• The Bison scored 21 points off of turnovers and forced 11 Harriers' turnovers.
• The Harriers went 20-for-22 from the foul line.

RECORDS

Bethany College – 1-1 (0-0 PAC)

Miami-Hamilton – 1-0

UP NEXT

Bethany returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 11 when they face Beloit at 11 am to close out the Defiance Purple and Gold Tournament.