CSR (Calvin Falls to Hope in Select Bank/Hall of Fame Classic Title Game)

CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR NOV. 25, 2006

Hope Knocks off Knights in Select Bank/Hall of Fame Classic Finals

MEN'S BASKETBALL
Hope 76, Calvin 54
(Written by Drew DeVries '08)

Calvin and Hope met for the 162nd time and the Flying Dutchmen tied up the all-time series at 81 apiece in a convincing win over the Knights.

Hope opened the game with a 9-2 scoring run as the Knights turned the ball over uncharacteristically early on. But junior Derek Griffin kept the Knights in it by knocking down three shots beyond the arc to bring the Knights within one at 14-13. But Hope began rebuilding its lead again until Griffin once again brought the Knights back when he hit another triple, was fouled, and then completed the four point play to make the score 23-19 with 10:08 left to play in the opening half.

But Hope (2-0) once again was able to start pulling away as the Flying Dutchmen outscored Calvin 23-13 over the final 10 minutes of the first half. The Flying Dutchmen were led by Tournament MVP Derek Van Solkema who scored 16 points in the first half. A mid range jumper by Stephen Cramer at the end of the half put Hope ahead 46-32.

Early in the second half, it looked as if the Knights were going to be able to stage a comeback. After a couple of triples by Caleb Veldhouse, Calvin got within 11 with the score at 51-40.

But just like in the first half, Hope was able to regroup and grab the momentum right back. Hope slowly built its lead off of great three point shooting. Calvin was never quite able to settle in and gather a rhythm which was something head coach Kevin Vande Streek talked about in the post-game press conference.

“Their composure compared to ours was night and day," said Vande Streek. "It was disappointing because I thought we could recover in the second half but they’d turn up the pressure and we’d fall back on our heels.”

Also, Vande Streek stressed the errors he saw from his team. “We made so many defensive errors. We are very inexperienced which showed tonight. I definitely found some things we need to work on.”

Hope head coach Glenn Van Wieren was pleased with his team’s performance. “This was a great team win for us," he said. "To come here and have a chance to win, you’re very elated. To win by this margin was a surprise because Calvin is a very good ball club. But we played great tonight and we beat a great team.”

Griffin led the Knights with 18 points that were all scored in the first half. The Flying Dutchmen were led by Van Solkema who scored 21 while Cramer and Marcus Vanderheide each added 20.

Shooting the ball was a problem for the Knights in this one as they shot just 29.7% while Hope shot just under 51%.

With the win, Hope wins its second consecutive Select Bank/Hall of Fame Classic championship.

VanSolkema was joined on the all-tournament team by VanderHeide and Cramer from Hope, Griffin from Calvin and John Jonker and Andy Bronkema from Cornerstone.

In addition to tying up the rivalry 81-81, Hope also stretched its lead in the all-time point totals to 44 (10,884-10,840).

The next meeting between the two teams will again be at the Calvin Fieldhouse. That meeting is scheduled for January 13 at 2:00 p.m. and will be an MIAA regular season game.

CONSOLATION GAME WRAP-UP: Cornerstone 78, Aquinas 63

Second round tournament action saw Cornerstone (5-4) knock off the Saints of Aquinas to win the consolation game and receive third place in the Select Bank Tournament.

The Golden Eagles jumped off to an early 7-2 lead but Aquinas came right back to tie it at 9 apiece as each team played aggressively on both sides of the ball. Cornerstone was able to continuously pound it inside but watched Aquinas take a 21-20 lead with 8 minutes remaining but it was the last lead that the Saints would see. All-Tournament team selection Andy Bronkema for the Golden Eagles fired a triple as time was running out to score three of his 17 first half points and put Cornerstone up 41-31.

Aquinas came out in the second half struggling to put the ball in the basket as they watched Cornerstone continue to build on their lead. Cornerstone went on runs of 9-0 and later an 18-4 run that put Cornerstone up 66-45. Aquinas was outplayed and the Golden Eagles proved to be too much as the Saints fell 78-63.

Bronkema led all scorers with 28 while Matt McDonald for the Saints led his team with 14.

Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sat Nov 25 23:21:42 2006