WINONA LAKE – Grace College’s men’s basketball team used a suffocating defense to power by Mt. Vernon Nazarene 69-53 on Tuesday at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center. The Lancers (16-5, 6-3 Crossroads League) have now won six of their past seven games. The Cougars (13-8, 4-5 CL) were held 21 points below their season scoring average of 74.1 points per game, struggling to shoot 33 percent for the contest. Grace's defense was in lockdown mode from tipoff, as Mt. Vernon missed its first eight field goals due to the Lancers’ pressure. The Cougars took nearly five minutes to get on the scoreboard, and they mustered just five points over the opening 10 minutes. Offensively, Grace, ranked 23 in the latest NAIA Division II national poll, used balanced production in the first half as eight Lancers got in the scoring column. A jumper from Logan Irwin in the final seconds of the half lifted the Lancers to a 28-18 advantage at the break. The Cougars were stifled into shooting 22 percent for the half. They had as many made field goals (6) as turnovers (6). Back-to-back three-pointers from Brandon Vanderhegghen and Niko Read to start the second half forced Mt. Vernon to burn an early timeout. Grace's offense was not done, however. The Lancers made their first five field goals of the half to go on top 43-22. Grace maintained a 20-point cushion most of the second half, leading by as many as 24 points. The Cougars trimmed Grace's cushion down to 11 at 60-49 with 3:16 remaining, but Grace made enough baskets down the stretch to keep the Cougars at bay. For the game, Grace connected on 51 percent of its field goals, including a 15-of-24 (63 percent) performance in the second half. Irwin finished with a game-high 17 points. He made 8 of 13 from the floor and added two steals. Read netted 11 points in 18 minutes, and Vanderhegghen added nine points, six rebounds and three assists. Chad Hoffer tallied seven points and four rebounds off the bench, and Kyle Fillman chipped in with six points, four boards and two blocks. As a team, Grace finished with a 32-12 advantage in points in the paint. Grace also proved opportunistic, scoring 21 points off the Cougars’ 12 turnovers. Trey Vaughn led Mt. Vernon with 12 points, while Joey Schmitz added 10. The Lancers, who sit in a three-way tie for second place in the league standings, will travel to Taylor on Saturday for a 1 p.m. tipoff. Top-ranked Indiana Wesleyan will then visit the MOCC on Tuesday.
