MARION – Ranked fourth in the latest NAIA Division II national poll and sitting atop the Mid-Central College Conference standings, Grace College's men's basketball team certainly has a target on its back. The Indiana Wesleyan Wildcats took aim and hit it Tuesday night, upsetting the Lancers 82-74 at Luckey Arena in Marion. "We know we have a target on our back," said Grace coach Jim Kessler, who was denied his 650th career win. "We didn't wear that target well tonight. We just got outplayed. Wesleyan played hard." The host Wildcats led by nine points at halftime and by as many as 21 in the second half before Grace rallied and cut the deficit to three, hitting 9 of 13 treys in the second half. Back-to-back three-pointers from freshman Niko Read and senior Dayton Merrell cut Wesleyan's lead to 73-70 with 1:51 remaining, but the Wildcats outscored the Lancers 9-4 the rest of the way and earned their seventh-straight win over Grace. The Lancers, who fell to 18-4 overall and 8-3 in MCC play, haven't defeated Wesleyan since Jan. 17, 2009. Luckey Arena hasn't been so lucky for the Lancers, as they've lost eight-straight games at Wesleyan. Grace's last victory at Wesleyan came on Dec. 4, 2004. "We played hard for eight minutes," said Kessler. "We've got to have that nasty about us and play hard the whole game. I was disappointed in our intensity level in the first half." The Wildcats, who were ranked No. 1 in the country when they beat Grace 65-55 in Winona Lake on Nov. 29, improved to 14-9 overall and 6-5 in MCC play. After starting the season with a 9-0 record, the Wildcats have won just five of their last 14 games. For the majority of Tuesday night's game, however, Wesleyan looked like the team that was the preseason pick to win the MCC. The Wildcats were balanced, with three players scoring in double-figures and three others scoring at least eight points, and made 60 percent of their shot attempts. Jordan Weidner and George Jones IV led Wesleyan with 16 points each, while Patrick Hopkins scored 12, D.J. Bettinger added nine and Aaron Martin and Derrick Troyer chipped in with eight points each. "They play hard," Kessler said of the Wildcats, who have won 51 of their last 57 games at Luckey Arena. "They had people who made plays, and we didn't. We played hard for a stretch in the second half, but the rest of the game, Wesleyan just outplayed us." The Lancers made 47 percent of their shot attempts and were outrebounded 34-26 by the more-physical Wildcats. Senior Jacob Peattie led Grace in scoring with 14 points, while sophomore Greg Miller added 13 points and eight rebounds. Junior Elliot Smith and Merrell scored 11 points each, while Read finished with 10 points. Smith and Read both came off the bench, and the duo scored the majority of their points during Grace's second-half rally. Combined, Smith and Read were 7 of 11 from the field overall and 5 of 7 from the arc. "We had some guys come off the bench and play with heart," said Kessler. "Elliot Smith and Niko Read made some big shots for us in the second half." While Tuesday's loss was disappointing, Kessler was quick to point out it wasn't the end of the season. The Lancers sport an 18-4 record, have been ranked in the top 10 in the country all season and still hold a two-game lead in the conference standings as they try to get back to the national tournament for the fourth time in five years. Spring Arbor could have gained a game on the Lancers but lost to St. Francis. Goshen, Indiana Wesleyan, Marian, St. Francis and Spring Arbor are all 6-5 in MCC play, while Bethel and Huntington are 5-6, Taylor is 4-7 and Mount Vernon Nazarene is 3-8. The Lancers have seven games remaining as they try and win their first MCC regular season championship since 1993. "We've put ourselves in position, but we're not a championship team yet," said Kessler. "We've got to bounce back from this. We've got to learn from this. I know Huntington isn't going to lay down and die Saturday." Grace hosts Huntington Saturday at 3 p.m.
INDIANA WESLEYAN 82, GRACE 74 Grace 31 43 – 74 IWU 40 42 – 84 Grace – Dayton Merrell 4-11 0-0 11, Greg Miller 5-9 3-3 13, Duke Johnson 3-7 1-2 7, Jacob Peattie 5-7 4-5 14, Bruce Grimm Jr. 3-12 0-0 6, Lee Ross 1-2 0-0 2, Niko Read 4-5 0-0 10, Elliot Smith 3-6 2-2 11, Karl Columbus 0-0 0-0 0, Dennis Williams 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 28-60 6-7 74. IWU – Derrick Troyer 2-6 4-4 8, Aaron Martin 3-6 0-0 8, Patrick Hopkins 5-12 2-3 12, George Jones IV 7-7 2-6 16, Jordan Weidner 5-7 6-6 16, David Peters 0-0 1-2 1, Taylor Schoen 2-2 2-5 6, D.J. Bettinger 3-4 0-0 9, Parker Stouffer 2-6 0-1 6, Zac VanDeWater 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-50 17-27 82. Three-pointers – Grace 12 (Peattie 4, Smith 3, Merrell 3, Read 2), IWU 5 (Bettinger 3, Martin 2); Rebounds - Grace 26 (Miller 8), IWU 34 (Jones 7); Turnovers – Grace 14, IWU 18; Fouls – Grace 23, IWU 17; Fouled out – none; Records: Grace 18-4 (8-3 MCC), IWU 14-9 (6-5 MCC)
