SPORTS REPORT FOR JANUARY 8, 2005
MEN'S BASKETBALL
(Written by Abby Zylstra)
In front of a crowd of more than 2400 fans at the Calvin Fieldhouse, the
nationally-ranked Britons of Albion held off an upset-minded Calvin team 68-65.
The Calvin-Albion game was one of three MIAA contests decided by three points
or less on Saturday.
Calvin is 9-4 overall and 1-1 in the MIAA. Nationally-ranked Albion is
12-0 overall and 2-0 in the MIAA.
Ranked seventh in the latest D3hoops.com Top-25 poll,
Albion got the tip-off and first two points of the game, but Calvin
quickly answered. Senior Dan Aultman [Ludington, Mason County Central]
put up two points, stole the ball back and scored another three. Senior
Ricky Shilts [Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo Central] stole the ball and passed to
senior Kyle Trewhella [Rockford, Rockford] for another two points. The
Knights took an early 9-2 lead. Albion scored a couple three-pointers
to make it a one point game. The Knights and the Britons each went for
a six-point run, and then the Britons took another eight consecutive
points, giving them a 5 point lead - the Britons's first lead after the
first basket of the game. Albion scored a couple baskets, but Trewhella
connected on a three-point basket right before half-time, cutting the
Britons's lead down to five, 28-23.
Albion started off the second half scoring nine consecutive points with the
Knights trailing by 13 points.
Calvin responded with an 8-0 run and cut the lead down to one after a layup
inside by sophomore Josh Meckes (Bay City/Saginaw Valley Lutheran HS) made the
score 48-47.
Albion responded by building a five-point lead at 52-47 on a layup by junior
Garrett Gibbons and a pair of free throws from sophomore Lonny Fulse.
Albion then built an eight-point lead at 64-56 on a pair of free throws from
sophomore Evan Way with 2:50 left.
Calvin came back to cut the deficit to three on three straight possessions but
the Britons held off the Knights with timely free throw shooting, connecting on
12 of 14 at the charity stripe on the game.
Albion's only misses at the line came with 22 seconds remaining and the
Britons holding a 68-65 lead. The missed free throws gave Calvin a chance to
tie the score with a three-point shot but the Knights were unable to set up a
quality attempt and settled for a 25-foot three at the buzzer by Shilts that
was on line but fell short.
"The game was a physical battle. It's frustrating, disappointing,"
said
head coach Kevin Vande Streek. "But we've got to find a way to pick our
spirits up and get back to work."
Shilts lead the team with 14 points; Hoekstra had 11 points and three
rebounds; Trewhella had 11 points, a game high four assists, and two
steals; Meckes had a team high nine rebounds, nine points, three
assists, and two steals. The Britons out-rebounded the Knights 41-29,
and the Knights shot 76.2% from the free-throw line.
"I thought we missed some shots - we had some pretty good looks," said
Vande Streek. "The turnovers were very good. We forced several
turnovers."
Albion was led in scoring by Gibbons who pumped in 15 points including three
triples while senior Michael Thomas had 13 points and five rebounds. Albion
senior Travis DePree also had a fine game before fouling out with four minutes
left as he tallied 12 points, eight rebounds, three steals and one blocked
shot. Junior power forward Brandon Crawford was also strong for the Brits as he
collected a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds
Calvin entered the game as the national leader in team three-point field goal
percentage with a 46.1 percent clip but Albion's defense put the clamps on
the perimeter threat as the Knights were just five of 21 from beyond the arc
for a 23.8 percent clip.
Albion also won the battle of the boards, outrebounding Calvin 41-29 and
finished the game with a 44.1 percent field goal clip including 48 percent in
the second half. Calvin shot just 36.7 percent overall including just 30
percent in the first half.
Albion will travel to Hope next Wednesday while Calvin will host Kalamazoo
Wednesday. Both games are scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m.
OTHER MIAA SCORES SATURDAY
Adrian 79, Hope 77
Alma 88, Tri-State 86
Kalamazoo 84, Olivet 52
MIAA MEN'S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 1-8-05
Albion 2-0
Alma 2-0
Calvin 1-1
Hope 1-1
Adrian 1-1
Kalamazoo 1-1
Olivet 0-2
Tri-State 0-2
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
(Written by Annalise VenHuizen)
Calvin defeated fellow conference foe Kalamazoo (7-7, 2-3 MIAA) at Calvin
Fieldhouse with a score of 78-51. Calvin is now 11-2 on the season, 5-1 in
MIAA conference play.
Though Kalamazoo started off the game with a three-pointer by freshman guard
Therese Demres, Calvin went on a 10-0 run, not allowing the Hornets to score
for over 6 minutes. The Knights held the Hornets from scoring again; holding
them this time at 9, while Calvin charged to a 30-9 lead.
Kalamazoo came alive again and managed to close the 21 point lead down to a 16
point lead, allowing only nine points, while scoring 14, to end the half 39-23.
The Knights went on in the second half to play just as well defensively and
offensively. They out scored the Hornets 39-28, added 31 rebounds and 3
blocks.
Calvin's bench played a key role in the victory, scoring 16 points in the
second half. Coach John Ross said, "We got great minutes at the end from
Bussis and Boonstra, showing that we have a deep bench which can come out and
produce with confidence."
Senior Stephanie Bussis(Unity Christian) had seven points and one block in the
second half, while freshman Erica Boonstra (Chicago Christian, IL) had eight
points.
Calvin was able to close the game strongly with a 27-point lead over
Kalamazoo.
High scorers for the Hornets were Demres with 13 points and junior Stefanie
Salasky with 10.
On the Calvin side, sophomore Lisa Winkle (South Christian) had an outstanding
game with 24 points 12 rebounds, and 2 blocks to record her eighth collegiate
double-double. Tying Boonstra with 8 points were senior Lisa Nanninga (Grand
Rapids Christian), senior Kristen McDonald (West Catholic), and freshman
Lindsey Peuler (Grandville). McDonald also had 10 assists.
Coach Ross said, "That was the best complete game we've played all year.
We really got at it defensively which allowed for some easy shots. It was a
great end to a tough week, this being our fifth game in nine days."
The Knights now have a well-deserved week off, and will return to action when
they play Olivet at home on Saturday, January 15 at 3:00.
OTHER MIAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCORES SATURDAY
Albion 106, Tri-State 100
Olivet 55, Alma 51
Hope 78, St. Mary's 64
MIAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 1-8-05
Albion 6-0
Calvin 5-1
Hope 5-1
Kalamazoo 2-3
Olivet 2-3
Adrian 1-4
Alma 1-4
St. Mary's 1-4
Tri-State 1-4
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sat Jan 8 22:44:50 2005
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.8 : Sat Jan 08 2005 - 22:44:50 EST