ALMA, Mich. – The 12th-ranked Calvin University men's basketball team was strong from start to finish in a road win at Alma College by the final score of 77-62 on Wednesday.
 
Calvin (17-3, 7-2 MIAA) took control early with an 11-0 run to start the game, but Alma (10-10, 4-5 MIAA) pushed its way back into the game, taking a 29-27 lead with 4:33 to play before the Knights closed the half on a 10-2 run to take a 37-31 halftime lead.
 
Jalen Overway (Holland, Mich./Holland Christian) led the Knights with 12 points on 4-6 shooting from the field, helping Calvin shoot 54.2 percent in the half while the defense held the Scots to 38.7 percent.
 
Alma hung around to start the second half, keeping the Knights' advantage between four and eight points for the opening 10 minutes, but a Calvin 10-2 run capped by a Trip Riemersma (Holland, Mich./Zeeland East/SVSU) dunk and three-point play pushed the lead to 65-49 with 7:32 remaining.
 
From that point, the Knights' lead never dipped below 14 points the rest of the way as they secured the road victory.
 
After scoring a career-high 42 points in the first meeting against Alma, Overway finished with a game-high 24 points despite the Scots sending a wave of bodies at him nearly every time he touched the ball.
 
Alma also tried to speed the Knights' offense up throughout the night with full court pressure, but Calvin was able to counter in the second half with a strong effort to break the press and get good shots in the paint.
 
The Scots' aggressive defense opened up the game for several Calvin perimeter players, including Luka Ressler (Caledonia, Mich./Catholic Central), who finished with 14 points. Marcus Bult (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton Academy) and Jordan Scott (Plymouth, Mich./Plymouth Christian Academy) each added 11 points, while Riemersma led the Knights off the bench with seven points.
 
In spite of those double and triple teams on Overway, the Knights still dominated inside with a 44-24 advantage in points in the paint and finished the night shooting 51.9 percent.
 
Uchenna Egekeze (Huntley, Ill./Huntley) led the defensive effort with three blocks and one steal.
 
Overway also added 14 rebounds, giving him his 12th double-double of the season.
 
COACH'S COMMENT: "Really good league, road win," Calvin head men's basketball coach Bill Sall said. "I was really happy with our start today. Much better focus. Some great minutes from Trip Riemersma. Uchenna played a great defensive game on Connor Riley (held to 11 points), and Marcus Bult was very good in the press-breaker."
 
NEXT UP: Calvin men's basketball returns to action on Saturday, February 3, when it hosts Adrian College at Van Noord Arena. That game is scheduled to tip off at 3:00 PM.