Box Score GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Calvin men's basketball team extended its winning streak to six games after an impressive shooting performance against Kalamazoo with a final of 96-66 on Thursday evening at Van Noord Arena.
The game marked Calvin's second win of the week over the Hornets as the Knights had claimed an 83-65 win at Kalamazoo Monday night.
The Knights started the game by jumping out to an early 10-4 lead after a 3-pointer by sophomore Marcus Bult (Wheaton, IL / Wheaton Academy). Calvin was playing great defense and after another 3-pointer from Bult, the Knights led 23-11.
The Knights were up by 17 after a 3-pointer by Thad Shymanski (Ada, MI / Grand Rapids Christian) to give them a 31-14 advantage with 7:16 left in the half.
Calvin closed the last seven minutes of the first half on a on 21-12 run to take a 52-26 lead over Kalamazoo after a fast break layup by senior Emmett Warners (Grand Rapids, MI / Grand Rapids Christian).
Shymanski led the Knights in scoring at halftime with 17 points, shooting 5-7 from the three-point line. Bult came off the bench for Calvin to have 12 points at half. The Knights shot an impressive 20-35 (57.1%) from the field and 9-17 (52.9%) from three-point range. They also outrebounded the Hornets 23-12 on the glass in the half and tallied 13 total assists.
Calvin was still in control of the game midway through the second half as freshman Logan Van Essen (Crown Point, IN / Iliana Christian) hit a triple to put itself up 72-45 with 11:23 left. Kalamazoo struggled to stay with Calvin the remainder of the 2nd half and the Knights went on to win their sixth straight game.
The Knights were led in scoring by Shymanski with 23 points followed by Bult and Uchenna Egekeze (Huntley, IL / Huntley) with 12 points each. Calvin shot 35-64 (54.7%) from the field and 15-30 (50%) from the three-point line. The Knights outrebounded the Hornets 39-26 on the glass and finished with 24 total assists.
COACHES COMMENTS: "I really liked our intensity and the way we began the game," said head coach Bill Sall. "The second half I wish we could have been a litter better as we sort of relaxed a little defensively. Great minutes by Thad (Shymanski) and continued to see him play at a really high pace and some good balance in scoring by our group. It was a good team win which you are supposed to do at home. Now we have a huge one Saturday to get ready for."
UP NEXT: The Knights will travel to Olivet on Saturday February 5 for a 3 p.m. tipoff.
