With the victory, the Engineers improved to 4-5 on the league season and won their fourth road game during the conference schedule.

Rose-Hulman earned the lead at 60-58 on a score by senior Ron George (Louisville, Ky./Manual) in the lane with 1:04 left.  Following a turnover by the Beavers, senior Jared Moore (Indianapolis/Perry Meridian) added one free throw to make the score 61-58 with 16 seconds left.

Aaron Taylor of Bluffton responded with a basket in the lane with 8.4 seconds left to cut Rose-Hulman’s advantage to 61-60.  George was fouled on the inbounds pass and hit two free throws with 5.5 seconds remaining to make the score 63-60.

Bluffton had a final chance to tie at the buzzer, but a well defended three-pointer by Colt Cunningham was off the mark as time expired to secure the Rose-Hulman victory.

Moore led the Engineers with 16 points and five assists.  Freshman Daniel Lowers (Gosport/Edgewood) added 13 points, six rebounds and four steals, while George pitched in 13 points for Rose-Hulman.

Taylor paced Bluffton with 15 points on 5-5 from the field and the free throw line.  Josh Eichar scored 12 points off the bench, and Cunningham pitched in 10 for Bluffton.

The two teams battled through an even first 20 minutes, with Bluffton emerging with a 30-29 advantage at the break.  The Beavers shot 43% from the field and hit 12-13 from the foul line in the opening 20 minutes, while Rose-Hulman hit 48% from the field.

Bluffton gained a lead of six points late in the first half, but the Engineers relied on a field goal by junior Lorenzo Rice (Grandview, Mo.) and two free throws from Lowers to bring the margin within 30-29 at halftime.

Rose-Hulman earned a five-point lead on two occasions early in the second half, but Bluffton scored four points in 10 seconds midway through the stanza to force a 45-45 with 10:22 remaining.  The margin remained tight over the next several minutes, with the score knotted at 51-51 at the 5:10 mark.

Bluffton held a 58-54 lead, before a four-point possession by Rose-Hulman tied the score at 58-58 with 1:54 remaining.  Freshman Michael Kelly (Fort Myers, Fla.) rebounded his own missed shot, scored and drew a foul to make the score 58-56.  Kelly missed the free throw, but Moore grabbed the rebound and scored to knot the score at 58-58.

Rose-Hulman improved to 8-10 on the season and 4-5 in conference play with the victory.  Bluffton dropped to 11-7 and 5-4 in league contests.  The Engineers return to action on Wednesday with a home matchup against Franklin College.

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