JACKSONVILLE, Ill. - It was a tale of two halves for the Grinnell College men's basketball team in the Midwest Conference Tournament championship game Saturday afternoon.

After the Pioneers stormed out to a 15-point halftime lead, host Illinois College roared back with a 65-26 scoring edge in the final 20 minutes to claim a 108-84 victory in defending its tourney title.

Grinnell's balanced scoring attack featured four players in double figures. Kai Te Huki '27, an All-MWC first-teamer, led the charge with 20 while Ryan Tarighi '27 and Gabe Garcia '27 each scored 14. Jordan Lee '27 added 11 points.

Tolu Johnson '25 was a big presence inside with seven rebounds and a block. Jack Ruhanen '25 also had a block. In the steals department, Johnson, Lee, Sean Walser '26, Tarighi, Nick Lundy '27 and Dillon Gestring '25 each had two.

Leading 37-36 with six minutes to go in the first half, Grinnell broke things open with an eight-point run that included a layup by Garcia, a 3-pointer by Lundy and another trey by Tarighi for a 45-36 edge.

Following a basket by the Blueboys, Grinnell finished the half with a 13-4 run. Garcia kicked things off with two free throws, followed by two jumpers by Tarighi and layup by Garcia for a 53-39 lead. 

Illinois College (23-4) slowed the run with two free throws, but Garcia made a jumper for a 55-41 lead. Two free throws by the Blueboys were answered by Te Huki's trey to put the Pioneers ahead 58-43 entering the locker room.

The Blueboys came out on fire in the second half, opening with an 18-2 run to go ahead 61-60. Grinnell (19-7) got its final lead on Garcia's two free throws with 12:34 remaining to make it 62-61 before the hosts countered with a 9-0 run. They kept it up from there for the victory.

The setback does not take away from an otherwise stellar season in which the Pioneers established several school records, including free throws made (547), free throws attempted (811) and steals (417). Individually, Te Huki twice tied a school record by shooting 100 percent from the free throw line in a game and Lee tied the school mark for 3-point percentage in a contest when he hit 85.7 percent of his shots from deep range against Ripon College.

Also, good things are on the horizon for the Pioneers as they graduate just one player from the 2023-24 team.