GRINNELL, Iowa – Grinnell outlasted the Illinois College men's basketball team, 123-110, in a Midwest Conference contest at the Darby Gymnasium on Saturday.
The loss dropped IC to 14-6 overall and 7-4 in conference play. Grinnell moved to 15-5 and 8-3.
Grinnell 123 IC 110
The Pioneers jumped ahead early in the contest, leading by 10 on two occasions, the last coming at 35-25 with 9:05 left in the opening half. IC then rallied and when
Buzz Ritzel dunked with 3:03 left, the Blueboys had a 44-43 lead. After a Ritzel layup gave IC a 48-47 advantage, Grinnell finished the period with a 6-1 run and took a 53-47 advantage into halftime.
In the second half, IC's
Josh Harris scored on a tip-in to tie the game at 53 with 18:52 remaining but that would be as close as the Blueboys would get for the remainder of the day. The Pioneers pushed their lead to as much as 16 on two occasions before closing out the contest.
Ritzel and Harris combined for 67 of IC's 110 points as Ritzel had 34 points and Harris 33.
Seth Doss was the only other Blueboy to score double figures as he had 16 points to go along with 11 rebounds.
Jaylen Swinney added a game-high 13 rebounds for IC.
Blue Notes
The win snapped IC's four-game winning streak… IC has still won seven of its last nine outings… this was the third time in the past seven games that Ritzel has eclipsed the 30+ point mark and the second time this season that Harris has turned the trick… the 110 points is a season-high for IC… the Blueboys have won 46 of their last 57 games and 63 of the past 74… IC has also won 35 of its previous 43 Midwest Conference contests.
Up Next
The Blueboys will complete the current three-game road trip with a visit to Monmouth on Wednesday. The tip-off time will be 7:30 p.m.
