Box Score

GRINNELL, Iowa - In a game that was relatively close throughout, Grinnell's offense proved to be too much for the Red Hawks, as the Pioneers topped the Red Hawks 110-102. Ripon lost, despite shooting 51 percent (36-70) from the field and 32 percent (6-19) from 3-point range. Division-III's national leader in free throw percentage, Ripon also converted 86 percent (24-28) of their shots from the line. Grinnell meanwhile, shot 47 percent (40-85) from the field and 33 percent (17-51) from 3-point range. The Pioneers also forced 20 Ripon turnovers, which they turned into 36 points.

Neither team led by more than seven points in a wild first half, which saw eight ties and 11 lead changes. Ripon (10-6, 7-4 MWC) didn't trail in the first five minutes, until a Patrick Maher layup gave Grinnell (12-4, 7-4 MWC) a 15-13 lead. The Pioneers would grab a five-point lead shortly thereafter, only to see Ripon go on a 12-2 run, keyed by baskets from five different players, to give the Red Hawks a five point lead of their own. That lead would be shortlived, as Grinnell used an 21-10 run of their own to take a four-point advantage. After a Ty Sabin 3-pointer briefly gave Ripon the lead late in the half, the Pioneers took it right back, en route to a three point halftime lead.

In the first minute of the second half, Ripon tied things up again on another 3-pointer by Sabin. The Red Hawks would take their only lead of the half a few minutes later on a Kyle Loughrin 3-pointer, but that would be short-lived. Grinnell answered with a 17-4 run to take the first double digit lead of the game, going up by 10 with 12 and a half minutes remaining. Ripon would pull within three with one and a half minutes left on a 3-pointer by Brendan McCoy, but that was as close as the score would get the rest of the day.

Sabin led the Red Hawks with a career-high 27 points, to go along with six rebounds and four assists, while Loughrin added 19 points, six assists and three steals. David Klink added 12 points and a career-high 11 rebounds for his first career double-double, while Ty Ketz chipped in with 11 points.

Grinnell was led by Maher's 25 points, five assists and four steals, while Jack Taylor added 16 points on 6-of-17 shooting. Kyle Parker chipped in with 15 points, while Tague Zachary and Aaron Levin scored 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The loss drops the Red Hawks into a second-place tie in the MWC standings with Grinnell. Ripon will try to rebound on Tuesday against Beloit College. That game will begin at 5:30 p.m. and can be seen live on http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/ripon.portal#.