Lancers Upend Rival Cougars
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Dale [email protected]
His Grace College men's basketball team responded well, holding Mid-Central Conference rival St. Francis to 21 points over the final 20 minutes of play en route to a 67-60 win at the Orthopaedic Capital Center.[[In-content Ad]]"I wasn't happy with our intensity and passion in the first half," said Kessler, whose team improved to 13-3 overall and 2-0 in MCC play. "I told them to get after it, play with more energy and passion."
The host Lancers trailed 39-36 at halftime, but held St. Francis to just eight field goals and four free throws in the second half.
As Grace picked up its defensive intensity, the offense came around too.
Trailing the Cougars 45-40 with 15:43 remaining in the game, 6-foot-10 junior Eric Gaff sparked a 17-2 run that was capped off by a bucket from 5-11 ultra-quick junior guard Austin Kaiser.
The Wawasee High School product's field goal gave the Lancers a 57-47 lead with 9:41 to play.
After St. Francis came back and took the lead with a 13-2 run of its own, a field goal and a three-pointer by Kaiser put the Lancers up 64-60 with 59 seconds remaining.
Sixteen seconds later, Kaiser struck again, this time by stealing the ball from St. Francis freshman Austin Leisure.
"He's a great sixth man," Kessler said of Kaiser, who finished the game 5 of 7 from the field for 11 points. "He brings a lot of enery and quickness to the court. He comes up with big plays."
Sophomore David Swanson converted a pair of free throws for the Lancers with 32 seconds remaining, and then Gaff hit 1 of 2 charity tosses with 16 seconds left to account for the final score.
While Swanson's free throws were important down the stretch, his game-high 12 rebounds, including five on the offensive end, were what Kessler was excited about.
"Swanson's 12 rebounds tonight were huge," said Kessler. "He did a stellar job on the boards. This was a good team effort, we've struggled with St. Francis in the past."
Wednesday's win halted a four-game losing streak to the Cougars, who fell to 10-6 overall and 1-2 in MCC play.
"It's nice to get off to a good start in the conference," said Kessler. "Started the conference season 0-3 last year. Starting this year 2-0 is something we wanted to do."
The seven-point win also put the Lancers atop the MCC standings by themselves.
Bethel, Taylor, Huntington and Spring Arbor are all 2-1 in league play, followed by Goshen (1-1), St. Francis (1-2), Indiana Wesley (0-2) and Marian (0-3).
Grace will play at Indiana Wesleyan Saturday and at Spring Arbor Wednesday.
Marcus Moore and David Henry led Grace in scoring with 12 points each, while Kaiser finished with 11, Scott Moore chipped in with 10 and Gaff finished with nine points.
To go with his strong effort on the boards, Swanson scored six points, while Warsaw Community High School graduate Michael Wienhorst added six points and Kyle Johnson rounded out the Grace scoring with two points.
Mike Steinau led the Cougars with a game-high 20 points, while Nate Bojrab and Kreigh Hentrup chipped in with 12 points each.
GRACE 67, ST. FRANCIS 60
SF 39 21 - 60
G 36 31 - 67
St. Francis - Bojrab 4 3-5 12, Steinau 7 5-5 20, Hentrup 4 3-4 12, Edmonds 3 1-2 7, Christlieb 2 1-2 5, Webb 0 2-2 2, Malone 0 0-0 0, Leisure 0 2-4 2, Gardner 0 0-0 0, Eaton 0 0-2 0. Totals 20 17-26 60.
Grace - Johnson 1 0-0 2, Wienhorst 2 0-0 5, Gaff 4 0-1 9, S. Moore 5 0-1 10, M. Moore 5 1-2 12, Kaiser 5 0-0 11, Henry 4 0-1 12, Winkleman 0 0-2 0, Swanson 2 2-2 6, Kauffman 0 0-0 0. Totals 28 4-13 67.
3-point goals - St. Francis 3 (Bojrab, Steinau, Hentrup), Grace 7 (Henry 4, Wienhorst, M. Moore, Kaiser). Rebounds - St. Francis 38 (Edmonds 10), Grace 30 (Swanson 12). Turnovers - St. Francis 24, Grace 13. Fouls - St. Francis 19, Grace 18. Fouled out - Edmonds.
His Grace College men's basketball team responded well, holding Mid-Central Conference rival St. Francis to 21 points over the final 20 minutes of play en route to a 67-60 win at the Orthopaedic Capital Center.[[In-content Ad]]"I wasn't happy with our intensity and passion in the first half," said Kessler, whose team improved to 13-3 overall and 2-0 in MCC play. "I told them to get after it, play with more energy and passion."
The host Lancers trailed 39-36 at halftime, but held St. Francis to just eight field goals and four free throws in the second half.
As Grace picked up its defensive intensity, the offense came around too.
Trailing the Cougars 45-40 with 15:43 remaining in the game, 6-foot-10 junior Eric Gaff sparked a 17-2 run that was capped off by a bucket from 5-11 ultra-quick junior guard Austin Kaiser.
The Wawasee High School product's field goal gave the Lancers a 57-47 lead with 9:41 to play.
After St. Francis came back and took the lead with a 13-2 run of its own, a field goal and a three-pointer by Kaiser put the Lancers up 64-60 with 59 seconds remaining.
Sixteen seconds later, Kaiser struck again, this time by stealing the ball from St. Francis freshman Austin Leisure.
"He's a great sixth man," Kessler said of Kaiser, who finished the game 5 of 7 from the field for 11 points. "He brings a lot of enery and quickness to the court. He comes up with big plays."
Sophomore David Swanson converted a pair of free throws for the Lancers with 32 seconds remaining, and then Gaff hit 1 of 2 charity tosses with 16 seconds left to account for the final score.
While Swanson's free throws were important down the stretch, his game-high 12 rebounds, including five on the offensive end, were what Kessler was excited about.
"Swanson's 12 rebounds tonight were huge," said Kessler. "He did a stellar job on the boards. This was a good team effort, we've struggled with St. Francis in the past."
Wednesday's win halted a four-game losing streak to the Cougars, who fell to 10-6 overall and 1-2 in MCC play.
"It's nice to get off to a good start in the conference," said Kessler. "Started the conference season 0-3 last year. Starting this year 2-0 is something we wanted to do."
The seven-point win also put the Lancers atop the MCC standings by themselves.
Bethel, Taylor, Huntington and Spring Arbor are all 2-1 in league play, followed by Goshen (1-1), St. Francis (1-2), Indiana Wesley (0-2) and Marian (0-3).
Grace will play at Indiana Wesleyan Saturday and at Spring Arbor Wednesday.
Marcus Moore and David Henry led Grace in scoring with 12 points each, while Kaiser finished with 11, Scott Moore chipped in with 10 and Gaff finished with nine points.
To go with his strong effort on the boards, Swanson scored six points, while Warsaw Community High School graduate Michael Wienhorst added six points and Kyle Johnson rounded out the Grace scoring with two points.
Mike Steinau led the Cougars with a game-high 20 points, while Nate Bojrab and Kreigh Hentrup chipped in with 12 points each.
GRACE 67, ST. FRANCIS 60
SF 39 21 - 60
G 36 31 - 67
St. Francis - Bojrab 4 3-5 12, Steinau 7 5-5 20, Hentrup 4 3-4 12, Edmonds 3 1-2 7, Christlieb 2 1-2 5, Webb 0 2-2 2, Malone 0 0-0 0, Leisure 0 2-4 2, Gardner 0 0-0 0, Eaton 0 0-2 0. Totals 20 17-26 60.
Grace - Johnson 1 0-0 2, Wienhorst 2 0-0 5, Gaff 4 0-1 9, S. Moore 5 0-1 10, M. Moore 5 1-2 12, Kaiser 5 0-0 11, Henry 4 0-1 12, Winkleman 0 0-2 0, Swanson 2 2-2 6, Kauffman 0 0-0 0. Totals 28 4-13 67.
3-point goals - St. Francis 3 (Bojrab, Steinau, Hentrup), Grace 7 (Henry 4, Wienhorst, M. Moore, Kaiser). Rebounds - St. Francis 38 (Edmonds 10), Grace 30 (Swanson 12). Turnovers - St. Francis 24, Grace 13. Fouls - St. Francis 19, Grace 18. Fouled out - Edmonds.
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