Upland, IN – The Grace Christian University Tigers played spoiler on Friday night at Taylor University's 22nd annual "Silent Night Game," defeating the Trojans 73-71 in what was an exhilarating game from start to finish. The Tigers made history, placing the only blemish on Taylor's (now) 21-1 record in this iconic annual event in which their crowd brings their home court advantage to a whole other level.
The Tigers settled in quickly and jumped out to an early lead after knocking down their first 4 shots of the game. The Trojans scored their 10th point and as expected, fans stormed the court and the craziness ensued for a couple minutes before the game resumed (videos of this year's court storm can be seen on ESPN). For the rest of the game in its entirety it was a back-and-forth affair, and the atmosphere remained electric.
An 8-0 stretch late in the second half allowed the Tigers to turn a two point deficit into a six point lead, with clutch back to back three-point shots from Caleb Anderson (SR/Shelby HS) and Austin Jackson (JR/Kelloggsville HS), followed by another basket from Jackson. Missed free throws from the Tigers allowed the Trojans one last chance to heave a deep running three point shot at the buzzer, but the shot was long, giving the Tigers a win in arguably the toughest road environment in college basketball regardless of division.
Jackson scored a team-high 23 points and pulled down 7 rebounds to lead the Tigers. Kellum Bridgeforth (FR/Grand Haven HS) shined on the big stage, connecting on 7-10 shots for a career-high 14 points. Brandon Winchester-Jones (JR/Dowagiac HS) scored 11 points to round out the Tigers in double-figures. Anderson played a solid 33 minutes with 8 points, a team-high 4 assists, and 0 turnovers.
The Tigers will have over a week before their next game, an exhibition at Saginaw Valley State University on Monday, December 17.
