Box Score

Despite a strong second-half rally, the Malone University men's basketball team suffered a 76-68 defeat to Grand Valley State (MI) University on Friday in the Consolation Game of Gannon (PA) University's Porreco Cup.  After falling behind 37-22 at halftime, the Pioneers roared back into the game early in the second stanza, using a 16-2 scoring run to trim the Lakers' advantage to 49-46 with 12 and a half minutes remaining.  Malone then kept things close over the next few minutes but was unable to completely close the gap before Grand Valley State managed to put the contest out of reach with a late 8-2 surge.  The Lakers, members of NCAA Division II and the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), improved to 8-3 with the win while the Pioneers fell to 7-7.

A three-pointer by Malone guard Isiah Elliott gave the Pioneers a 16-13 lead midway through the opening period.  However, Grand Valley State then dominated the remainder of the first half, outscoring Malone 24-6 over the final 12 minutes of the period to take the big lead into the locker room at intermission. 

After managing to hit just 8 of 22 (36.4%) shot attempts through the first 20 minutes, the Pioneers' offense got on track in the second half as the squad knocked down 14 of 25 (56.0%) field goals over the remainder of the contest.  Malone ended up with a 46-39 scoring edge in the final stanza but it was not enough to complete the comeback. 

Overall, the Pioneers ended the evening having made 22 of 47 (46.8%) field-goal attempts, eight of 20 (40%) three-pointers and 16 of 22 (72.7%) free throws.  The Lakers countered by knocking down 24 of 47 (51.1%) shots from the field, 7 of 15 (46.7%) treys and 21 of 26 (80.8%) foul shots.  In addition to its edge in shooting, Grand Valley State also enjoyed a 30-24 advantage on the boards.

Forward Cory Veldhuizen led the way for Malone, racking up a game-high 21 points after sinking four of five free throws and 8 of 13 shots from the floor, including one of his two attempts from beyond the arc.  Before fouling out, guard Eric Coblentz posted 18 points and four assists with one block and one steal.  Like Veldhuizen, Coblentz also had an efficient shooting night, hitting all four of his foul shots and five of six field goals, including four of five treys.  Elliott added nine points and a team-high six rebounds.

Guard James Thomas paced four Lakers in double figures with 20 points.  Guard Breland Hogan added 13 points, five rebounds and five assists.  Forward Tyrone Lee tossed in nine points while snagging a game-high eight boards.

Malone will look to bounce back on Saturday (January 7th) with a 4:00 p.m. home contest against Cedarville University (the Yellow Jackets entered their New Year's Eve game against Texas A&M International with a 7-5 overall record).  Live statistics will be provided free of charge for those fans who cannot be in attendance. Click here for the link.