CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR JANUARY 7, 2004
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Over the past few years, the Bulldogs of Adrian College have given the Knights of Calvin fits. That pattern remained the same in the MIAA opener for both teams Wednesday evening at the Calvin Fieldhouse but in the end, it was Calvin coming out on top by an 85-78 score.
Calvin is now 8-0 in MIAA openers under current head coach Kevin Vande Streek and 41-10 all-time in MIAA openers since the Knights entered the league in time for the 1953-54 season.
In addition, the victory was Calvin's third straight * marking its longest win streak of the season as the Knights improved to 7-5 overall and more importantly to 1-0 in the MIAA.
After taking a 46-44 halftime lead, Calvin fell behind in the opening minutes of the second half as Adrian senior Brian Schaefer converted a three-point play to put the Bulldogs (6-5 overall, 0-1 MIAA) up 51-48 with 16:10 remaining. Adrian would hold the lead over the next 11-and-a-half minutes but a gritty Calvin defensive effort inside the final 8:45 of play turned the tide.
With Adrian leading 72-67 with 8:45 remaining, Calvin dug down and held the Bulldogs scoreless over the next six minutes while mounting a an 11-0 scoring run that allowed the Knights to retake the lead. A three-pointer by senior Chris Prins (Escondido, CA) with 4:26 left gave Calvin its first lead since the opening minute of the second half, putting the Knights up 74-72. Prins then converted a pair of free throws and added a layup in traffic to give the Knights a 78-72 advantage with just over three minutes remaining.
Schaefer was finally able to break the Adrian scoring drought on a layup at the 2:28 mark that pulled the Bulldogs to within four.
Calvin had a chance to seal the game in the final minute but misfired on four straight free throws to keep Adrian within striking distance. An Adrian turnover and a free throw by Calvin senior Ryan Smalligan (East Grand Rapids HS) gave the Knights an 82-78 lead with 24 seconds remaining and senior Kevin Broene (Grand Rapids Christian HS) helped put the capper on the win with a pair of free throws with 14 ticks left.
Prins added an additional free throw in the closing seconds to boost his final scoring total to 14 points. With his scoring effort, Prins moved past Dan Davis and Kyle Vander Brug and into 10th place on the all-time Calvin scoring list as he now has 1,334 career points. Junior Dan Aultman (Mason County Central HS) led the Knights with 16 points, 11 rebounds and five blocked shots, notching his first double-double in a Calvin uniform. Broene also reached double figures with 10 points along with six assists and five rebounds. Smalligan added seven points, six rebounds, five blocked shots and three assists.
Adrian was led by Schaefer's game-high 23 points as he was 9 of 31 from the field and 3 of 15 from three-point range. Adam Novak had a double-double with 18 points and 11 boards while sophomore Billy Collins had 11 points.
Calvin returns to action on Saturday when it journeys to Albion for a game scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. at Albion's Kresge Gymnasium.
OTHER MIAA MEN'S BASKETBALL SCORES WEDNESDAY
Olivet 62, Albion 58
Hope 109, Tri-State 93
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Wed Jan 7 21:56:54 2004
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.8 : Wed Jan 07 2004 - 21:56:54 EST