BELOIT, Wis. — The Beloit College men's basketball team showcased a resilient defensive effort in the first half but ultimately could not overcome a cold shooting night, falling to Ripon College 59-46 at Flood Arena this evening.
Despite the loss, the Buccaneers (3-5, 0-2 MWC) displayed significant grit, erasing a nine-point first-half deficit to enter the locker room tied, before Ripon (1-6, 1-0 MWC) pulled away in the final twenty minutes.
The game began as a defensive struggle, with the Red Hawks opening up an early lead. Trailing 22-13 with just over five minutes remaining in the first half, the Buccaneers found their rhythm.
Beloit mounted a furious 11-2 run to close the half. Anthony Carter (Greenfield, Wis.) was the catalyst, knocking down key jumpers and converting from the free-throw line. The momentum shift peaked in the final minute of the half when Dae'Quan Davis (Chicago, Ill.) converted a fast-break layup off a Semaj Roy (Chicago, Ill.) assist, briefly giving Beloit a 24-22 lead—their first since the opening minute. A late Ripon bucket sent the teams into halftime deadlocked at 24-24.
The offensive momentum Beloit built to close the first half stalled after the break. While the defense continued to battle, forcing 10 Ripon turnovers on the night, the Buccaneers struggled to find the bottom of the net, shooting just 21.7% from the field in the second half.
Ripon opened the second period with a steady offensive flow, outscoring Beloit 35-22. The visitors established a double-digit lead midway through the half (43-31) and managed to keep the Buccaneers at bay for the remainder of the contest.
The story of the game was ultimately written in shooting efficiency. Beloit was held to 27.8% shooting from the field (15-of-54) and 20.0% from three-point range. In contrast, Ripon shot 40.7% for the game.
However, Beloit showed discipline in possession, committing only 7 turnovers compared to Ripon's 10, and fought nearly evenly on the boards (41-38 rebound advantage to Ripon).
Carter was the undeniable standout for the Buccaneers, pouring in a team-high 17 points. He was aggressive attacking the rim, earning 12 trips to the free-throw line, and was a force on the glass with 8 rebounds. He also led the defensive effort with 2 steals. Providing a massive spark off the bench, Davis matched Carter for the team lead in rebounds with 8. He added 6 points and finished with a team-high +6 plus/minus rating in his 19 minutes of play. Despite a tough shooting night, Roy contributed in other facets of the game, pulling down 7 rebounds and dishing out a team-high 4 assists, trying to facilitate the offense against a collapsing Ripon defense.
The Buccaneers will look to regroup in the next eleven days before they head to Jacksonville, Illinois and Illinois College on December 13th. Tip off from Sherman Gymnasium is set for 1 pm.
