Second Half Rally Falls Short as Beavers Down Yellow Jackets

DEFIANCE, OHIO - The Defiance College men's basketball team welcomed in HCAC rival Bluffton on Wednesday afternoon. Despite a strong second half from DC, the sharp-shooting Beavers prevailed, 85-77. 

Defiance was led by Sean Tyson (Columbus / Centennial) as the freshman scored a career-high 27 points in the affair. The Columbus native added three assists and two rebounds to his stat line. Tyler Andrew (Indianapolis, Ind. / Lawrence Central) followed with 18 points, six rebounds, and two steals. Also breaking double-digits on the day was Marell Jordan (West Lafayette, Ind. / Lafayette Jefferson) with 14 points. The freshman also tallied a team-high three steals in the contest. 

After a brief back-and-forth, the Yellow Jackets showed they were ready for the visiting Beavers, as they stretched out to an 11-7 lead. The Bluffton offense showed their experience as they quickly opened up a small gap over the Purple and Gold. Down 33-15, DC looked to close the gap before halftime. Outscoring the Beavers 14-10 in the final three and a half minutes, the sides headed to the locker room with a 43-29 Bluffton lead. 

The second half saw DC slowly whittle down the Beaver lead. With just under 10 minutes to play, an Andrew layup cut the Beaver lead to just 10 points. Bluffton began to stretch the lead once again before DC wrapped up the contest with some strong play. Down 74-59, the Yellow Jackets slowly knocked down the lead, bringing it to within seven with under one minute to play. 

With just 22 ticks on the clock Andrew knocked down a three from deep to bring the score to 81-75. Sending the Beavers to the line in the final seconds, the Yellow Jackets were unable to complete the comeback. DC outscored the Beavers 48-42 in the second half of action. 

The narrow defeat brings Defiance's record to 2-12 on the season, with an 0-7 mark in HCAC play. The Yellow Jackets will continue the busy HCAC schedule as they head to Cincinnati to take on Mt. St. Joseph on Saturday Jan. 12, with a tip-off time set for 2:00 pm.