GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Calvin men's basketball team dropped its opening game of the Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame Classic Friday night, falling to the host Aquinas College Saints 78-73.

 

Calvin (1-3) led 37-31 at halftime behind 22 first half points from freshman guard Luke Morrison (Bristol, Ind./Northridge HS).

 

The Knights maintained the lead through much of the second half. 

Aquinas (4-5) tied the game at 66-66 on a free throw with 4:18 remaining and then gained the lead at 68-66 on a layup with 3:06 left on the clock.

 

Sophomore Alex Bos (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian HS) responded with a deep three-pointer with the shot clock expiring to give Calvin a 69-68 lead with 2:35 remaining.

 

The Saints tied the game at 69 with a free throw but Luke Morrison responded with a short jumper that gave the Knights a 71-69 lead with 2:03 left.

 

Aquinas then nailed a three-pointer at the 1:42 mark to take a 72-71 lead. Aquinas regained possession after a Calvin turnover and shortly after bumped its lead to 74-71 with a pair of free throws.

Calvin missed a pair of jump shots in the final 1:04 of regulation and the Saints sealed the win with four free throws.

Calvin was led by Luke Morrison with a career-high 29 points. Bos was the only other Calvin player in double-figures in scoring with 13 points.

Calvin was 10-of-23 (.435) from three-point range but converted just 5-of-13 (.385) of its free throw attempts. The Knights also turned the ball over 17 times against the Aquinas pressure defense.

Aquinas placed five players in double-figures in scoring led by Arsenio Arrington with 19 points. Aquinas shot just 58.6 percent from the free throw line but converted 17-of-29 at the charity stripe to outscore Calvin by 12 points at the free throw line.

Calvin will face Cornerstone at 6 p.m. on day two of the tournament with Aquinas continuing to serve as host.