MONMOUTH, Ill. - After falling behind early and rallying, the Grinnell College men's basketball team went behind again and couldn't rebound in a 107-92 loss at Monmouth College Wednesday in a contest that saw Vinny Curta '19 become the Pioneers' season leader in free throws.
 
Curta, the nation's top scorer, surpassed his season average with a 35-point output. He also went over the 1,500-point mark for his career, just the 12th Pioneer to accomplish that feat while also becoming the new Pioneer leader for free throws made in a season with 192. The previous best was 188 by Steve Wood in the 2003-04 season.
 
Hannes Kogelnik '21 also had a big night with four 3-pointers and 18 points. He also had two steals, while Curta came up with two blocks.
 
Ky-Sean Johnson '18 added 11 points, while Morgan Walser '21 had a career night with all-time bests of eight points and two steals.
 
Will Dubow '21 added career-bests of four steals, three assists and two blocks, while Dawson Keller '21 blocked a career-best two shots. Brad Geiman '21 had a career-best two steals, along with three rebounds.
 
Monmouth scored the game's first seven points, but the Pioneers rallied and made it 11-10 on Curta's layup. It was a tight game for a while after that, with Grinnell taking its lone lead at 21-20 on Johnson's free throw with 11:01 left.
 
Later in the half, the Fighting Scots used a 12-0 run to turn a one-point lead into a 40-27 edge.
 
Monmouth led 53-45 at intermission, scored at the start of the second half and never saw its lead dip into single digits after that on its way to improving to 10-3 in the Midwest Conference and 13-7 overall.
 
Grinnell, 6-7 in the league and 11-8 in all games, entertains Illinois College at 3 p.m. Saturday in Darby Gymnasium. The day will serve as a celebration for retiring head coach David Arseneault, who will be honored at halftime of the 5 p.m. women's game while men's basketball alumni are also recognized.