Beavers smash margin-of-victory record with 112-31 win over Oak Hills
Nov. 16—BEMIDJI — The Bemidji State men's basketball team was in a record-breaking mood on Thursday at the BSU Gymnasium.
Facing Oak Hills Christian in an early-season home tuneup, the Beavers flexed their depth and talent, shattering the school record for margin of victory with a 112-31 win. The 81-point margin bested the previous record, set against Martin Luther in 2019, by 14 points.
"We were wondering (about) that," point guard Colin Schaefer said of the point margin. "We want to come in and play the right way no matter who we're playing. If that happens, that happens, but I feel like we did everything we could (to play well)."
BSU (3-1) dominated in every phase of the matchup, scoring 65 points in the first half while holding the Wolfpack to just 15. With mostly backups playing throughout the second half, Bemidji State still outscored Oak Hills 47-16.
"I liked what I saw for the most part," said head coach Mike Boschee. "It's a game that can give exposure to Oak Hills, and they've had some good groups over the years. They've had some good teams that have given us challenges at least. Tonight probably wasn't as much. But regardless, we wanted to play at a certain standard. We want to do things the right way. We wanted to work the basketball to get good looks. We wanted to defend the right way, as if we're playing one of the best teams in the country."
That defensive effort gave the Wolfpack little margin for error, and the Beavers' offense ensured there would be none at all. BSU shot 55.3% from the field while holding Oak Hills to 24.1%.
For Schaefer, who is leading Bemidji State as its floor general in his first season with the program, these early-season games are essential to establish trust with his new teammates.
"It starts with doing all the right things off the court, on the court," said Schaefer, who transferred in from Odessa College in Texas. "On the court, making sure everybody gets their touches, keeping everybody involved. Leading guys when you need to, stepping back when you don't."
Boschee was hoping Schaefer would be able to seamlessly integrate into BSU's returning core, and so far, things are progressing pretty smoothly.
"He's done really well," Boschee said. "He's a mature young man that understands what success looks like, and he wants to be a really good point guard. He's not a point guard that really cares about his stats and those kinds of things. That's the humility that you want out of a point guard. You don't want to have a leader out there that's worried about his stats and if he gets this much playing time or that much playing time. He just wants to win. He's a point guard that's willing to do that."
Schaefer has traversed a complex path to Bemidji State. The Sun Prairie, Wis., native began his collegiate career at Wisconsin-Green Bay in 2020, then transferred to Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas, for the 2021-22 season. He transferred again to Odessa for the 2022-23 school year, then made his way to BSU this fall.
Transferring three times has exposed Schaefer to a diverse array of schemes and taught him how to win friends and influence teammates quickly. Now, he's applying those hard-won lessons with the Beavers.
"The biggest thing I've learned from being at the past few schools (is that) winning kind of solves everything, and winning keeps everybody happy," Schaefer said. "Winning is the goal. Whether I'm playing, whether I'm not, whether I'm shooting a lot of shots, whether I'm not, winning keeps everybody happy, keeps the train rolling. ... (The journey) turned me into the player I am today."
Bemidji State 112, Oak Hills Christian 31
OHC 15 16 — 31
BSU 65 47 — 112
OAK HILLS CHRISTIAN — Coffy 11, Huonder 7, Bock 4, Hower 4, Chaney 3, Keepers 2. Totals: 14-58 FGs, 2-19 3-pt. FGs, 1-4 FTs.
BEMIDJI STATE — Albrecht 20, Sutherland 17, Pecarich 12, Juenemann 11, Davis 10, Dayley 9, Josephson 6, Olson 6, Schaefer 6, Ijadimbola 5, Tennyson 4, Williams 4, Severts 2. Totals: 47-85 FGs, 12-39 3-pt. FGs, 6-14 FTs.
