The Kalamazoo College men's basketball team lost 73-65 at Bluffton University (Ohio) on Wednesday. The Hornets trailed 39-35 at halftime.
There were five lead changes in the first half with the largest lead (39-32) belonging to Bluffton 2:24 before halftime.
Bluffton led the entire second half, although the Hornets were within four points (50-46) with 14:22 remaining before the Beavers extended the lead to 10 (58-48) five minutes later. Another Kalamazoo run made it a five point game (61-56) with 4:54 left, but the Hornets were not able to get any closer in the defeat.
Bluffton shot 45.2 percent overall while Kalamazoo shot 37.3 percent. The Beavers made 14-of-21 free throws compared to 15-of-22 for the Hornets. Bluffton held a 49-31 advantage in rebounds, including 20-12 on the offensive end resulting in 24 second chance points compared to 11 for Kalamazoo. The Hornets turned the ball over just 10 times compared to 15 for Bluffton.
Mark Ghafari led Kalamazoo with 27 points on 9-of-13 shooting (5-6 FT) with four rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
Eric Fishman added 15 points with four rebounds and three steals. Carter Goetz and Grant Carey each scored six points while Keaton Adams added five points with four rebounds off the bench. Goetz had a team-high six rebounds.
Kalamazoo returns home to face Case Western Reserve University on Sunday, Dec. 9 at 2 p.m.