JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – The Grinnell College men's basketball team tuned up for the 2015 Midwest Conference Tournament in perfect fashion Saturday afternoon, sailing by Illinois College 125-107.
The Pioneers, who have won six of their last seven games, will be the No. 3 seed for the tourney and take on second-seeded Monmouth College at 3:30 p.m. next Friday in De Pere, Wis.
Grinnell, which completed its first season sweep of the Blueboys since the 2008-09 season, finished regular-season play with a 12-6 mark in league action and 14-9 record overall. Illinois College wound up 3-15 in the league and 4-19 in all games.
The Pioneers were hot from 3-point land, draining 25-of-54 shots for 46.3 percent.
Luke Yeager '15 was 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and had 27 points.
Jack Taylor '15 was 6-of-11 on 3-pointers and had 26 points, while
Julian Marx '17 hit 7-of-10 long balls and finished with 23 points.
Marx was 5-of-6 on 3-pointers in the second half alone and had 17 points.
Kyle Parker '17 led Grinnell in assists with eight, while
Mike Porter '17 and
Braedon Bayer each had three steals.
Tague Zachary '15 grabbed seven rebounds.
The Pioneers dug a 13-point hole in the first half and still trailed by eight before going on a 17-2 run over a four-minute stretch spanning the end of the first half and start of the second.
Nick Curta '17 had a layup and Taylor two free throws to cut the gap to 58-54 by halftime.
In the second half, Parker drained a 3-pointer and Yeager got a layup to put the Pioneers ahead 59-58.
Jacob Ekstrand '18 followed with a trey before Illinois College got two free throws.
Taylor then hit a 3-pointer and Curta a layup to complete the run and put the Pioneers ahead 67-60 with 17:40 left.
The hosts did close within four with just over 13 minutes left. Taylor stopped the Blueboys' momentum with a 3-pointer, though. After Illinois College got a basket, Yeager made a 3-pointer and Marx sank a shot to make it 82-72.
The hosts never got within eight points after that as Grinnell cruised to the win.
