February 18, 2001
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The Bluffton College women's basketball team will host Anderson University on Tuesday, February 20 in the first round of the Heartland Conference tournament. Tip-off time has been set at 6:00 p.m.
The BC men's team will also be hosting Anderson in a first round game, which will be played after the women's game.
February 20, 2001
Earning a #4 seed in the Heartland Conference tournament, the Bluffton College women’s basketball team hosts the #5 seed Anderson University Ravens tonight in Founders Hall. This marks the second straight season that BC has finished in the top four of the league, and Bluffton’s 58-56 win at Anderson last Wednesday night clinched at least a #4 seed regardless of how BC faired last Saturday at Franklin.
Franklin clinched a #3 seed in the tournament by beating Bluffton on Saturday 100-78. A 19-0 scoring run by Franklin early in the first half was the difference in the game as Bluffton ended the regular season 11-13 overall and 5-7 in the Heartland Conference. Senior Elizabeth Snavely scored a game-high 18 points and was a perfect 8-8 from the free throw line, while senior Jen Bear collected her fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Franklin led by as many as 32 points early in the second half, but a 16-0 BC run brought the margin to within 14 points with under 10 minutes left in the game. The host Grizzly squad, however, regrouped to quickly go back up by 24 points with six minutes to play to sweep the season series from the Beavers.
Bluffton swept the season series from Anderson, winning 60-51 in Founders Hall on Jan. 24 and then 58-56 last Wed. at Anderson. In fact, Bluffton has never lost to the Ravens in eight meetings, dating back to the 1995-96 season. Neither team shot above 40% from the floor against each other this season, and the visiting team grabbed the rebound advantage in both games. Another odd fact--no player on either team scored in double figures in both games against each other this season, although AU’s Rachel Miller came close with 18 points and 12 rebounds in the game at BC and then collected eight points and 16 rebounds in the game last Wed. at AU.
In their game here on Jan. 24, Bluffton held Anderson scoreless for the first four and a half minutes of the game, but the Ravens came back to take a 22-19 lead at halftime. AU then built their lead to nine points at 39-30 with under 10 minutes remaining in the contest before the Beavers went on a 24-4 run to take control of the game. Kristy Crall led Bluffton with 14 points and a game-high five steals, while Kristin Helvey added 13 points. Bluffton connected on 23 of 26 free throw attempts (88.5%) to overcome a 31.5% shooting night from the floor.
Last Wed. at Anderson, BC overcame a 12-point deficit with 11:44 left in the game to claim the two-point win. Jen Bear led Bluffton with 17 points as the Beavers tied a season low with just ten turnovers in the game. Kristin Helvey collected nine points and four assists, while Elizabeth Snavely chipped in eight points.Anderson's Christy Clodfelder scored a game-high 22 points.
Bluffton finished the regular season as the league’s third highest scoring team, averaging 68.2 points per game. Anderson has the HCAC’s second best defense, however, allowing 61.5 ppg. Jen Bear and Elizabeth Snavely ended the regular season ranked in the top ten in the league in scoring and rebounding, while Kristy Crall and Kristin Helvey ranked in the top five in assists, 3-pointers made and both ranked in the top ten in steals. Liz Bock owns the league’s second-best field goal percentage. Anderson’s Rachel Miller ranks third in the league in scoring (14.9 ppg) and first in rebounding (11.3 rpg).
