GRINNELL, Iowa - It is crunch time in Midwest Conference men's basketball and it took until the final 1:30 to decide the battle between Illinois College and Grinnell tonight.
With the score tied 87-87, the Pioneers netted the final eight points to claim the victory 95-87 in Darby Gymnasium for their eighth win in a row.
Sharp-shooter Adam Phillips notched a 3-pointer coming out of timeout to gain the lead, 90-87. Then the Pioneers put together three defensive stops and hit their free throws to seal the win.
The victory keeps Grinnell in third place with an 8-4 mark while Illinois College falls to 6-5 in the league, good for fifth place.
In the first half, Grinnell opened the scoring on a Phillips 3-pointer, but IC countered with three field goals to take a lead and they never relinquished it the rest of the half. At the 16-minute mark the visitors pushed their margin to a seven-point lead. Minutes later the difference was 10 points.
Down 39-30, Grinnell mounted a comeback closing the gap to 40-39 before IC would answer with two field goals. The margin sat at 46-44 with 2:20 remaining in the first stanza, and then the Blueboys rounded out a solid half, 52-47.
In the first half, the Pioneers struggled from the floor hitting only 36 percent and 26 percent from outside the arc. IC netted 56 percent from the floor but they could not capitalize on at the free throw line, hitting just 10 of 18.
At the start of the second stanza the home team worked quickly to take the lead 54-52 on a Dean Mazlish trey. IC took the lead, 62-61, with just under 15:00 and controlled the scoreboard until David Bluder scored two successive drives to the basket, making it 72-70 Pioneers. For the remainder of the contest Grinnell held the lead until the Blueboys tied the score 87-87 with 1:30 left.
Patrick Simms led Grinnell with 22 points and Mazlish fueled the second half surge with 12 as he hit for a total of 14. Phillips was also in double figures with 12.
Simms also had five assists, moving him to 19th in program history with 190. He also moved to 19th all-time in steals with 117 and
Tommy Smith, who jumped to 19th on the blocked shots list with 31, led Grinnell in rebounds with 10.
Brady Vest came up with a career-high four steals.
Grinnell has some time off before playing at Beloit College next Tuesday.
