The 16th ranked Grand View Vikings (21-6, 10-4 MCC) hosted a stubborn Iowa Wesleyan College team Wednesday night, using a 15-4 run late in the second half to gain the 74-57 MCC victory. The Vikings shot 50% from the floor in the second half and used a 33-21 rebounding advantage for the game to help gain their 21st victory of the season.
Grand View was tested early by the Tigers of Iowa Wesleyan, holding a slim 32-27 margin going into the half. The Tigers were led in the first half by senior Jared Callanan's hot shooting, as he finished the first twenty minutes with 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the behind the three-point line. The Vikings bench provided a spark in the first half, as junior Royce Phillips scored on back-to-back opportunities and senior reserve Dan Brandhorst kept Callanan from getting good looks late in the half.
The second half saw the Tigers trim the deficit to one at 36-35, before the Vikings went on a 10-0 scoring run. The run began when senior Grant Burns found sophomore Kevin Smith open for a two-hand dunk that helped change the momentum of the contest. Burns connected again on the very next play with Smith for another dunk over an Iowa Wesleyan defender. The Tigers were never able to regain the momentum of the game as the Vikings were able to keep the Tigers out of arms reach the remainder of the night.
Grand View was led in scoring by senior Corey Viet with 21 points, 14 of which came in the second half. Viet also grabbed 10 rebounds to gain his third double-double of the season, while connecting on 8-of-11 attempts from the field. Burns led the Vikings in the assist column with 14, the fifth time this season that Burns has finished with double digit assists. Seniors Greg Schulz finished with 16 points and Matt Banzhaf ended the night with 7 rebounds.
The Vikings shot 50% for the game and 26.9% (7-26) from behind the arc. Grand View was 90% (9-10) from the charity stripe and finished with 20 assists and 13 turnovers.
Grand View will play their final regular season home game Saturday afternoon against Clarke College. Saturday afternoon's contest will be Senior Night for eight Vikings players as they look to close out their senior season with an undefeated, regular season home mark. Game time is 3:00 p.m.
