Loras connected on its first six shots to start the game en route to claiming a 27-17 lead midway through the first half. Buena Vista then went on a 15-6 run to close the gap to one at halftime. The Beavers took their first lead of the game on an Eric Wiebers layup at the 17:03 mark of the second half. Loras only enjoyed one more lead the rest of the game, but never trailed for more than seven points, which set up a tight finish.
Trailing 61-59 with 48 seconds remaining, Loras wing Greg King missed the front end of a one and one free throw opportunity. Buena Vista proceeded to make two offensive rebounds on missed shots and eventually two free throws to extend the lead to 63-59 with nine seconds remaining. A Loras layup with two seconds left cut the lead to 63-59, but Wiebers iced the game with two free throws.
Randy Bissen, who was engaged in a physical battle all night in the post, scored a game-high 17 points. Wiebers and Michael Cameron added 14 points. Jordan Campbell registered nine points, eight rebounds, and three blocked shots.
Jeff Ludovissy tallied 16 to lead Loras. Bobby Stineman contributed 12 and Kyle White added 10 points and nine rebounds. Matt Murray grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.
Loras outshot Buena Vista 38 to 34 percent from the field and held a slight 42-41 rebounding edge. The Duhawks were hurt by 12 turnovers while the Beavers coughed the ball up a season-low six times.
Buena Vista improved to 18-3 and 10-2 in the conference. The Beavers stayed two games behind conference-leading Wartburg College, who beat Coe College on Tuesday. Loras fell to 15-6, 9-3 in league play.
Loras vs Buena Vista University 1/08/05 8:00 at Storm Lake, IA At Storm Lake, IA BUENA VISTA UNIVERSITY 65, LORAS 61 LORAS (15-6,9-3) LUDOVISSY, Jeff 4-8 7-7 16; STINEMAN, Bobby 4-8 0-0 12; WHITE, Kyle 5-8 0-0 10; KING, Greg 3-9 1-3 8; MURRAY, Matt 3-6 0-0 6; ERNST, Jimmy 2-12 0-0 5; SILVESTRI, Pete 2-6 0-0 4; REDOVAN, J.R. 0-1 0-0 0; SULLIVAN, Gavin 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 23-60 8-10 61. BUENA VISTA UNIVERSITY (18-3,10-2) BISSEN, Randy 6-11 4-9 17; WIEBERS, Eric 4-14 3-3 14; CAMERON, Michael 6-12 0-1 14; CAMPBELL, Jordan 2-9 4-4 9; SCHMIDT, Jesse 2-2 0-0 4; VIET, Reece 1-3 2-2 4; JOEKEL, Mark 1-3 0-0 2; WITTRY, Matt 0-7 1-2 1; KIES, Brandon 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 22-64 14-21 65. Loras......................... 33 28 - 61 Buena Vista University........ 32 33 - 65 3-point goals-Loras 7-25 (STINEMAN, Bobby 4-8; KING, Greg 1-4; ERNST, Jimmy 1-7; LUDOVISSY, Jeff 1-4; REDOVAN, J.R. 0-1; SULLIVAN, Gavin 0-1), Buena Vista University 7-26 (WIEBERS, Eric 3-10; CAMERON, Michael 2-3; CAMPBELL, Jordan 1-2; BISSEN, Randy 1-1; WITTRY, Matt 0-5; KIES, Brandon 0-1; JOEKEL, Mark 0-2; VIET, Reece 0-2). Fouled out--Loras-None, Buena Vista University-None. Rebounds-Loras 42 (MURRAY, Matt 12), Buena Vista University 41 (CAMPBELL, Jordan 8). Assists-Loras 10 (LUDOVISSY, Jeff 3), Buena Vista University 15 (WIEBERS, Eric 6). Total fouls-Loras 20, Buena Vista University 13. A-900