WINONA LAKE - In high school, Bruce Grimm Jr. and Greg Miller played at rival schools. Saturday, they were quite the dynamic duo for Grace College's men's basketball team, as the Lancers beat visiting Mid-Central College Conference foe Goshen 90-76 at the Orthopaedic Capital Center. Grimm, a former Rochester standout, and Miller, North Miami's all-time leading scorer, combined to score 21 of Grace's first 24 points. Grimm finished with a career-high 34 points and dished out six assists, while Miller scored 12 points and pulled-down a game-high 10 rebounds. The Lancers, ranked eighth in the latest NAIA Division II national poll, are now 20-5 overall and 10-4 in MCC play. "Bruce had kind of a quiet 34-point game," said Grace coach Jim Kessler, whose team still holds a one-game lead in the MCC standings with four games remaining. "He had a nice game. Greg had a nice blitz there early, and then was really big on the boards." Miller scored Grace's first six points and had 10 at halftime. Grimm sccored 19 points in the first half, as the Lancers led 45-30 at the break. "We came to play today," said Kessler, whose team made 50 percent of its shots in both halves and outrebounded the Maple Leafs 42-29. "When we come to play, we're a good team." Grace also got 10 points from Dayton Merrell, nine from Elliot Smith, eight from Dennis Williams, seven from Duke Johnson and six from Jacob Peattie. Johnson missed the previous two games with a back injury. Saturday, he came off the bench and played 20 minutes. The 14-point loss was the seventh-straight setback on the road for the Maple Leafs, who made just 28 of 69 attempts from the field overall and 8 of 28 attempts from the arc. Goshen is now 17-9 overall and 7-7 in the MCC. "We came with some defensive intensity today," said Kessler. "We haven't always had that. I was proud of our defensive intensity today." Kody Chandler led Goshen with 20 points, while Mike Betcher and Casey Pratt added 15 and 12 points, respectively. The Lancers are in action again Tuesday when they host Marian University at 7 p.m. Avenging a 66-57 loss at Marian on Jan. 17 would help Grace take another step toward its first regular season conference championship since 1993. With 9-5 records, Indiana Wesleyan and St. Francis are both one game behind Grace in the MCC standings. The Lancers play at St. Francis Saturday. "It's gonna come down to the wire," said Kessler. "Every game is big."
GRACE 90, GOSHEN 76 Gosh 30 46 – 76 Gr. 45 45 – 90 Goshen – Matthew Martin 3-8 0-2 6, Mike Betcher 5-11 4-6 15, Kody Chandler 6-16 5-5 20, Casey Pratt 4-9 2-2 12, Geoffry Gilot 1-7 0-0 3, Tyler Hall 0-2 0-0 0, Garner Small 2-5 3-4 8, Kyle Davis 0-3 2-2 2, Matt Glick 2-4 0-1 6, Sean Day 2-4 0-0 4. Totals 26-69 16-22 76. Grace – Greg Miller 6-9 0-0 12, Dennis Williams 3-4 2-4 8, Jacob Peattie 1-2 3-4 6, Elliot Smith 3-8 2-2 9, Bruce Grimm Jr. 10-18 9-15 34, Lee Ross 0-1 2-2 2, Mogan Michalski 0-0 0-0 0, Niko Read 0-0 0-2 0, Jacob Goodman 0-0 0-0 0, Dayton Merrell 1-3 8-9 10, Benjamin Euler 0-1 0-0 0, Tannan Peters 0-0 0-0 0, Karl Columbus 1-3 0-0 2, Duke Johnson 1-3 5-6 7. Totals 26-52 31-44 90. Three-pointers – Goshen 8 (Chandler 3, Pratt 2, Betcher, Gilot, Small), Grace 7 (Grimm 5, Peattie, Smith), Rebounds – Goshen 29 (Garner 8), Grace 42 (Miller 10); Turnovers – Goshen 11, Grace 16; Fouls – Goshen 28, Grace 21; Fouled out – none; Records: Goshen 17-9 (7-7 MCC), Grace 20-5 (10-4 MCC)
