Grand Rapids, MI – The Tigers began their 2020 calendar year with a barn burner at Calvin University's Van Noord Arena on Saturday night, playing in a game that consisted of eight lead changes throughout.  Despite holding the lead at halftime and also securing a lead with 5 minutes left in the game, the Tigers ultimately fell 100-90 after Calvin fired on all cylinders offensively in the waning moments to finish the game on a 21-10 run.

"It's always a lot of fun to come to Calvin and play," said Grace Head Coach Gary Bailey.  "Their gymnasium is the best in Division III and our kids love playing here.  If you would have told me we would score 90 points tonight I would've said we would have come away with a win. Calvin just made tough shot after tough shot tonight. I love the way our kids battled. We had a couple late defensive breakdowns that resulted in easy baskets and that was the deciding factor.  We are proud of our kids and the progress they're making."

Senior Austin Jackson had quite the dual with Calvin's Alex Bos, as Jackson poured in 31 points but Bos put up 30 for Calvin at the other end on 10-11 shooting.  Brandon Winchester-Jones scored 20 for the Tigers, while also recording team-highs of 5 assists and 7 steals.  Kierson Watts provided an ample amount of energy off the bench, scoring 15 points on 6-7 shooting and pulling down a team-high 8 rebounds on the night.

The Tigers outscored Calvin by 18 points in the paint (46-28), but 14-30 shooting from beyond the arc would prove to be the difference maker for the Knights as they escaped with the win.

The Grace men's team join the women this week in Kissimmee, Florida for three big NCCAA games against Bob Jones University, Johnson University-Florida, and Welch College.  The action starts Thursday at 4:00 pm.