DECEMBER 29, 2000
MEN'S BASKETBALL
WOOSTER, OH - In a matchup of nationally-ranked teams, Calvin came up
just short as the Knights fell 73-71 to the University of Chicago Friday
night in a first round game of Wooster's Mose Hole Classic. Ranked
third nationally, Calvin (8-2) fell behind 17-5 in the opening stages of
the game with the eighth-ranked Maroons (8-1) and could never get over
the hump as Chicago led from start-to-finish.
Calvin battled back to within a point at 27-26 with 5:12 left in the
first half but Chicago answered with a 14-7 run to take a 41-33 halftime
lead. Chicago used red-hot shooting from beyond the three-point arc in
the first half to build its halftime lead as the Maroons were 9-of-10
from three-point range.
Chicago's outside game cooled off in the second half with the Knights
creeping back into the game as Calvin closed to within a point on three
separate occasions. Chicago matched each Calvin surge however as the
Maroons refused to give up the lead. Calvin closed to within 62-61 on a
jumper by senior Nate Burgess (South Christian) with 7:41 left to play
but Chicago ran off six unanswered points as sophomore Derek Reich
connected on three free throws and senior Jim Waichulus drained a clutch
three-pointer to give the Maroons a 68-61 lead with 4:26 left.
Calvin refused to fold, outscoring Chicago 10-4 over the next
three-and-a-half minutes capped off by a layup by sophomore Bryan
Foltice (Tri-unity Christian) that pulled Calvin to within 72-71 with 34
seconds left. Calvin then fouled Chicago's Martin Trammel with 27
seconds left with Trammel splitting a pair of free throws, giving the
Knights a chance to tie or take the lead.
Calvin failed to get off a shot however as an errant pass was knocked
away with three seconds left with the Knights unable to recover the ball
before time expired.
The victory was Chicago's third win of the year over an MIAA opponent as
the Maroons had previously defeated Hope and Kalamazoo.
"We're disappointed to have lost but I'm proud of the way we fought back
and kept our poise down the stretch," said Calvin coach Kevin Vande
Streek. "We weren't able to get over the hump tonight but part of the
credit is due to the way Chicago responded to every run we threw at
them. They hit some big shots and made some key plays so give them
credit."
Calvin was led in scoring by seniors Brian Krosschell (Grand Rapids
Christian) and Nate Burgess (South Christian) who collected 14 points
apiece while Foltice had 13 and freshman Chris Prins (Escondido, CA) 12.
Chicago was led by Reich as the pre-season All-American pumped in 18
points while Waichulus came up with 15 points including a 5-of-7
performance from three-point territory. Brad Henderson added 14 with
Jon Poyer chipping in with 11 for the Maroons.
Both teams finished with a 58 percent field goal clip with Chicago
making up the difference from three-point range as the Maroons hit
11-of-18 three-point attempts on the night for a 63.2 percent clip while
Calvin was 4-of-8 from beyond the three-point arc.
Turnovers also cost Calvin as the Knights turned the ball over 21 times
including five times in the final five minutes when the Knights were
attempting to gain the lead for the first time.
"This was a tough game to lose but we need to forget about it and come
back with a better effort tomorrow night," said Vande Streek. "We'll
come back tomorrow and see what we're made of."
Calvin will play in the consolation game at 5:30 pm against the loser of
the Wooster/Case Western Reserve contest.
-end-
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