ELSAH, IL - This afternoon, the Principia Men's Basketball Team played against Grinnell College for the second to last game before the Christmas break. Principia was coming off of a couple of wins in row, and was looking to continue to build on that momentum and grow as a team before starting conference play.
Grinnell plays a different style of basketball than most teams, and were able to take advantage of that against the Panthers. They try to push the pace in the game, get shots up early and pressure the ball on defense. Principia, knowing this came into the game prepared, but struggled to execute the game plan early. The Panthers got on the board early with a bucket inside for
Clark Davidson, followed by a floater and a layup in the lane by
AJ Byrd. The Panthers looked to be out to a good start, but the Pioneers responded by staying consistent and knocking down three 3 pointers in a 34 second stretch, giving the Pioneers an 18-6 lead. The ball pressure from Grinnell gave Principia a bit of trouble throughout the game, which consistently led to turnovers for Principia, leading to points for Grinnell. For the remainder of the half, it was a dog fight for the Panthers, as they continued to fight back and chip away at the lead but the Pioneers would bring in fresh players off the bench every couple of minutes. Principia kept working to shorten the lead, and after a
Kevin Wingert lay-up and a steal, leading to a bucket from
Clark Davidson, the Pioneers had their shortest lead at 34-27. However, it was too good to be true, and after a couple turnovers for the Panthers, the Grinnell lead was 14 points at the half.
The second half was a similar story to the first half. The Panthers came out and got the first bucket of the half, but continued to allow the Pioneers to get going offensively. Principia would continue to fight, and get some good looks on offense but would either struggle to convert or turn the ball over before they could finish the possession. Grinnell was very consistent and whenever Principia would make their runs, they were always halted by a tough bucket inside or a 3 pointer from the Pioneers. With about 10 minutes to go
Jake Kampf put away a lay-up and started a bit of a scoring run for the Panthers. Unfortunately, it was not enough to stop the offense of Grinnell, and the Panthers would ultimately fall 112-89.
Good To Know: AJ Byrd finished the game with 33 points, which is a season high for a Principia player. Byrd also added 8 rebounds and 6 assists.
Clark Davidson finished the game with 21 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists before he fouled out.
Jake Kampf had 9 points along with 6 assists, and
Nathan Brantingham finished with 17 points.
Up Next: Principia will be traveling to Lincoln, Nebraska to play Nebraska Wesleyan University this upcoming Saturday. Check out the Men's Basketball page for the link, and support the guys!
