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Bluffton College trailed Denison University for most of the second half but came back to tie the game at the end of regulation and force overtime, where the Beavers outscored the Big Red 13-9 to take a 78-74 win Saturday afternoon in Founders Hall.
Senior Mike Leimeister scored 31 points and senior Marcus Bixler scored a career-high 19 points, with nine of those points coming in the extra period as he hit a 3-pointer and made six free throws.
The two teams traded leads in the first half and went to the locker room tied at halftime 37-37. Denison went up by as many as six points in the second half but Bixler hit a 3-pointer with 1:50 remaining in regulation and then a lay-up with 0:52 to play to tie the game at 65-65.
Bluffton missed a 3-pointer and a lay-up on the game’s final possession in regulation, but the Beavers took control of the game in overtime to improve to 3-6 overall. Denison falls to 2-7.
Sophomore Bryce Beilharz scored seven points and tied a career high with four rebounds, while senior Derek DeNero scored nine points and grabbed seven rebounds.
Bluffton, which saw their first overtime action of the season, committed a season-low seven turnovers and converted 22-of-29 free throw attempts. The win was the first of the season for BC when being out-rebounded by their opponent (now 1-6 when that happens) and also the first of the season when shooting less than 50% from the floor (now 1-4 when that happens). In addition, the win was the first this season for BC when their opponent shoots better from the floor than they do (now 1-3 when that happens).
Bluffton will return to action on Monday, December 30 at 8 p.m. against Madonna University (Mich.) in the Fifth Annual McDonald’s of Bluffton Holiday Tournament.
