By: Trailing at halftime, the Pioneers made 15 of their 25 three-pointers in the second half to escape Sherman Gymnasium with the win.
Box Score JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – For the first 20 minutes on Saturday afternoon, the Illinois College men's basketball team confidently dealt with the defensive pressure of Grinnell and time and time again scored fast break baskets to take a halftime lead. In the second half, the cracks started to show and Grinnell was there to take advantage. Hitting 25 three-pointers in the contest, the Pioneers stormed past the Blueboys for a 125-107 win despite a game-high 31 points from
Cody Hildebrand. Illinois College closes out its season at 4-19 (3-15 Midwest Conference).
On Senior Day for
Brandon Fishburn and
Jacob Taylor, the Blueboys burst out of the gates with a 10-0 run in the first three minutes with Taylor getting the last bucket in that stretch. Grinnell finally began to find its offense, but Illinois College held the Pioneers at bay for a long stretch of the first half and took its largest lead at 40-27 with 8:09 remaining until halftime on consecutive Hildebrand jumpers. From there, Grinnell knocked down consecutive three-pointers and had the IC lead down to 58-54 at the half.
After shooting better than 64 percent in the first half, Illinois College wouldn't have the same success after the break. Grinnell was the team that started with a big run this time, taking its first lead with an 8-0 run before Fishburn connected on a pair of free throws to bring IC back to within two points at 62-60. The Blueboys battled to keep within four points after two
David Bauer free throws with 13 minutes remaining, but the lead soon grew to double-digits as Grinnell found the bottom of the net on 15 of its 25 three-point attempts after halftime.
Mitchell Patterson tried to turn the momentum with a pair of huge dunks late in the game, but the Blueboys wouldn't be able to come all the way back.
Five other Blueboys joined Hildebrand in double-figures. Fishburn was the second-leading scorer for IC in the contest with 17 points. Bauer and Patterson had 11 points apiece, while
Max Stutsman and
Jacob Taylor had 10.
Grinnell moved to 14-9 (12-6 MWC) with the win and will play Monmouth in a MWC Tournament semifinal on Friday afternoon in De Pere, Wis.
