News Release

STORM LAKE, Iowa — In a thrilling Iowa Conference quarterfinal tournament game, the Buena Vista University men's basketball team edged Luther College 73-71. The Norse had a three-point attempt miss the mark with less than three seconds to go that would have given them the lead. The subsequent tip in attempt also did not fall as the Beavers advanced to the semifinal round to face Wartburg College.

Down two points with three minutes to go, Jeff Bissen hit the first of a pair of free throws to bring the Beavers within one. Their next possession up the floor saw Mark Joekel’s three-point shot rattle around the rim before dropping in to give Buena Vista a 73-71 lead with a little over two minutes to go. It turned out to be the last points of the game for either squad.

The last possession of the game saw Luther's Andy Rump take a long-range three-pointer from the top of the key as time wound down. Josh Johnson had a decent shot at the tip in, but he could not get the equalizer to go as the Norse were trying to defeat Buena Vista in Storm Lake for the second time in the same season for the first time in this series between the two squads.

Buena Vista trailed Luther at the half by a score of 43-46 after Jesse Schmidt’s 3-point shot swished through the hoop with the clock winding down. A very physical contest between two schools that split the regular-season series, there were nine lead changes with Buena Vista’s largest lead being eight points in the second half before Luther whittled it away.

Bissen paved the way for the Beavers with 8-10 field goal shooting and 20 points on the night, although he only scored one point in the last 15 minutes of the game. Also hitting double figures were Brian Fogleman and Schmidt with 15 points apiece. The Beavers, now 13-13 on the year, shot 58.8% from the field.

The Norse had five players crack double figures with Jake Lappe’s 20 points leading the squad. Andy Campbell had 11 points, and Garrett Pool, Austin Bildstein, and Norm Winn each chipped in ten points. Luther, which ended its season at 13-13, shot 46.9% from the field and held a 33-26 rebounding advantage.

Buena Vista will face Wartburg, the second seed in the tournament, on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Waverly. The game will be broadcast in the Storm Lake area on 97.5 FM KBVU. The winner will advance to Saturday's championship game.

Newspaper Box Score
Luther College vs Buena Vista University
02/21/06 8:00 pm at Storm Lake, IA
At Siebens Fieldhouse

BUENA VISTA UNIVERSITY 73, LUTHER COLLEGE 71

LUTHER COLLEGE (13-13)
LAPPE, Jake 10-13 0-1 20; CAMPBELL, Andy 3-6 2-2 11; WINN, Norm 4-4 2-3 10;
POOL, Garrett 4-12 0-0 10; BILDSTEIN, Austin 4-8 0-0 10; DEVINE, Drew 3-10
0-0 6; RUMP, Andy 1-8 0-1 2; JOHNSON,Josh 1-3 0-0 2; DALRYMPLE, Clint 0-0
0-0 0; LAKE, Eric 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-64 4-7 71.

BUENA VISTA UNIVERSITY (13-13)
BISSEN, Jeff 8-10 4-5 20; FOGLEMAN, Brian 6-8 3-3 15; SCHMIDT, Jesse 6-9 1-1
15; JOEKEL, Mark 3-5 0-0 7; FRANCIC, Nesha 2-3 0-0 4; HOLTON, Eric 1-2 0-0
3; FRANKLIN, Rahn 1-4 1-2 3; WITTRY, Matt 1-2 0-0 2; PERSON, Travis 1-2 0-0
2; WAGNER, Andre 1-5 0-0 2; GRIMM, Nolan 0-1 0-1 0. Totals 30-51 9-12 73.

Luther College................   46   25  -   71
Buena Vista University........   43   30  -   73

3-point goals-Luther College 7-17 (CAMPBELL, Andy 3-5; BILDSTEIN, Austin
2-2; POOL, Garrett 2-6; RUMP, Andy 0-2; JOHNSON,Josh 0-1; LAPPE, Jake 0-1),
Buena Vista University 4-8 (SCHMIDT, Jesse 2-3; HOLTON, Eric 1-1; JOEKEL,
Mark 1-2; WITTRY, Matt 0-1; WAGNER, Andre 0-1). Fouled out--Luther
College-None, Buena Vista University-None. Rebounds-Luther College 33
(LAPPE, Jake 6; DEVINE, Drew 6), Buena Vista University 26 (FOGLEMAN, Brian
4; FRANCIC, Nesha 4). Assists-Luther College 18 (RUMP, Andy 5), Buena Vista
University 14 (WITTRY, Matt 5). Total fouls-Luther College 16, Buena Vista
University 12. A-900
Quarterfinal Round of Iowa Conference Tournament
Buena Vista advances to play Wartburg College on Thursday