Men’s basketball team concludes regular season with 85-55 win against Kalamazoo

The Olivet College men's basketball team concluded the regular season portion of its schedule with an 85-55 win against Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) rival Kalamazoo College today inside The Cutler Event Center in Olivet.

The first 10 minutes of the game was back-and-forth with neither team leading by more than three points. Olivet took a five-point lead at the 9:42 mark when senior Joel Kerns (North Judson, Ind./San Pierre) made two free throws. The Comets went up by as many as nine points, 38-27, with 43 seconds left in the half. Kalamazoo scored a basket to make the score 37-30 at halftime. Olivet took control of the game with a 29-9 run to start the second half. With 1:05 left in the game, the Comets had their largest lead at 33 points.

For the game, Olivet shot 54.1 percent (33-of-61) from the field and 73.7 percent (14-of-19) from the free throw line. The Hornets were 22-of-56 (39.3 percent) from the floor and 8-of-14 (57.1 percent) from the charity stripe. The Comets dished out 19 assists to five for Kalamazoo, and Olivet made 12 steals off 17 Hornet turnovers. The Comets also out-rebounded Kalamazoo, 40-26.

For Olivet, junior Nathan Jennings (Grant) led all scorers with 18 points. Junior Michael McClary (Bellaire) had 11 points and 10 rebounds for his 16th double-double of the season and 37th of his career. He also blocked three shots and made four steals. Junior Andre Evans (Muskegon/Muskegon Heights) dished out seven assists.

For the Hornets, Alex Lapka scored a team-high 12 points. Jeff Hollenbeck and Joe Prepolec each grabbed five rebounds.

The Comets will host Albion College in the first round of the 2010 MIAA Tournament next Wednesday, Feb. 24, at 7:30 p.m.