The Blackburn College Men's Basketball Team traveled to St. Louis, Mo. for their season opener against non-conference opponents from Washington University in St. Louis on Saturday, Nov. 14. It was a fast paced, phyical game which was reflected by the 48 total personal fouls in the game. The Bears of Washington University edged the Beavers by an end score of 90-60. 

The game started with Washington University jumping out to an early 11-2 run and the Bears never looked back. The Beavers were able to go on a few runs and chip away at the lead, but was never able to bring it all the way back. Blackburn found themselves behind 51-31 at the end of the first half. The second half began with the Bears again jumping out to a quick run to set the tone for the second half. The Beavers were outscored by ten points in the second half, making the final score 90-60. A few of the major factors which seemed to give Washington University the advantage in this game were: they caused 18 turnovers, grabbed 12 offensive rebounds, shot 52 percent from the field and held Blackburn to 33 percent shooting.

Despite the loss, Blackburn did show some glimpses of hope. "I thought for the most part, we competed and stayed together until the end. We saw how a high level program plays and executes, that's where we need to be. I told the team, win or lose, this isn't a one game season and it's a process. We need to continue to get better every day and that's what we will do," said head coach Steve Kollar.

Blackburn's top performer was sophomore Reed Rusten. Reed shot 6-13 - field, made 7-7 free throws, brought down six rebounds, recorded three steals, and added 21 points to the mix.

Blackburn will be back in action on Tuesday, Nov 17 against McKendree University in Lebanon, Ill. The game is scheduled to tip at 7:00 pm.