Grace Gets By Goshen
GOSHEN – Greg Miller buried a 3-pointer to score the first points of the game on Saturday afternoon, and the Lancers never looked back.
No. 17 Grace moved to within one game of first place in the Crossroads League with an 81-76 men’s basketball conference victory at Goshen.
Miller finished with 16 points, Bruce Grimm Jr. scored a team-high 20, and Elliot Smith added 11 to pace the Lancers (18-7; 10-4 CL).
The Lancers held at least a two-possession lead for much of the first half before Goshen cut the gap to 36-33 just before the halftime break.
Miller was a dominant force with 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting and nine rebounds before halftime.
Three minutes into the second half, the Lancers started to assert themselves with a 14-4 run to go ahead 55-41 with 13:25 to play.
Grace maintained their double-digit advantage and led 75-57 before head coach Jim Kessler subbed out the team’s starters in the final minutes.
Goshen made a valiant charge at the end as they concluded the contest on a 19-6 run. The Maple Leafs (7-18; 0-14 CL) cut Grace’s cushion down to five points by the time the final buzzer sounded as the Lancers made just 4-of-10 from the foul line in the final 1:09.
Grimm was the strongest offensive player for Grace in the second half with 11 points and three steals to his credit. Overall he finished with 20 points, 6 assists, 4 steals and 3 rebounds.
Miller recorded his 13th double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 boards. Smith knocked down 3-of-5 from beyond the arc for his 11 points, Karl Columbus scored eight points, and Tannan Peters added six points in 14 minutes off the bench.
As a team Grace nabbed 13 steals, which was one away from a season-best mark. They got to the free throw line 31 times, making 68 percent of their foul shots.
Goshen shot 54 percent from the floor in the second half, but the team’s 22 turnovers were hard to overcome.
The Lancers are one game out of first place in the Crossroads League standings with four games remaining. Grace will travel to Marian on Tuesday at 7 p.m. before hosting St. Francis on Saturday at 3 p.m.