GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Calvin men's basketball team advanced to the MIAA Tournament semifinals by taking down Alma at home with a final score of 91-70 on Tuesday evening at Van Noord Arena. 

The Knights started the game by grabbing a quick 9-4 lead after a 3-pointer by senior Luke Morrison (Bristol, IN / Northridge). The Scots began to pick things up offensively as they cut the lead for the Knights to four with a score of 18-14. 

Calvin responded right back at Alma with a 7-0 run capped off by a 3-pointer by freshman Logan Van Essen (Crown Point, IN / Illiana Christian) to push the lead to 25-14. The Knights maintained a steady lead throughout the first half, but the Scots began gaining momentum as they made it a two-point game with a score of 37-35 with 2:05 left in the half. 

Just before halftime, the Knights rattled off quick 9-5 run capped off by a made free throw by Alec Fruin (Beloit, WI / Turner) to lead 46-40 at the half. Morrison and senior Thad Shymanski (Ada, MI / Grand Rapids Christian) both led Calvin in scoring with 9 points while Shymanski also had 5 assists. 

The Knights shot 19-36 (52.8%) from the field and 5-17 (29.4%) from the three-point line. Calvin outrebounded Alma 18-12 on the glass and finished with 16 total assists in the first half. 

Calvin was hot out of the halftime time as it ran off a great 11-2 run which was capped off by a jumper by Eli Sensenig (Grayslake, IL / Westlake Christian Academy) to lead 57-42. The Scots began to struggle as the Knights were hitting on all cylinders and after a deep 3-pointer by Morrison, they led 72-54 with 9:27 left. 

Alma had no answers for Calvin's offense later in the second half and the Knights never took their foot off the gas pedal. The Knight were in control the remainder of the game and held off the Scots to win with a final score of 91-70.     

Morrison led Calvin in scoring with 23 points followed by sophomore Uchenna Egekeze (Huntley, IL / Huntley) with 17 points and 7 rebounds. Shymanski also added 11 points and 6 assist in the Knights' win. 

Calvin shot 35-65 (53.8%) from the field and 8-26 (30.8%) from the three-point line. The Knights also outrebounded the Scots 38-28 on the glass and finished with 27 total assists on the evening. 

COACHES COMMENTS: "We definitely had some good play at moments for us," said head coach Bill Sall. "I love the fact we had a lot of points in the paint this evening, and as a jump shooting team we have to find ways to get downhill and score at the rim. Overall, some positives from this game we can take into the next where we have a tough challenge ahead of us on Friday." 

UP NEXT: The Knights advance to the semifinal round of the MIAA Tournament where they will host Trine on Friday February 25 at 7 p.m. at Van Noord Arena. Tickets for the game can be purchased online at: https://www.miaa.org/landing/tickets.