Men's Basketball Downs Grace Christian 79-65

OVERVIEW – GRACE CHRISTIAN

SCORE: Northwood Timberwolves 79, Grace Christian Tigers 65

RECORDS: Northwood (5-7), Grace Christian (6-8)

LOCATION: Riepma Arena – Midland, Mich.

RECAP: Northwood men's basketball finishes 2024 with a 79-65 win over Grace Christian Saturday (December 21).

GAME STORY

• Northwood scored the first six points of the game and led the rest of the way.
• The Timberwolves led 12-3 at the 5:05 mark, which proved to be their biggest lead of the opening 20 minutes.
• Grace Christian chipped away at the lead the remainder of the half, eventually getting within two at 23-21 with 4:47 remaining.
• Northwood's lead stood at 29-24 at the break.
• It was the defenses that were the story of the opening half. After scoring 12 points in first five minutes of the game, Northwood had just 17 over the final 15 minutes of the half. Grace Christian was held to 28.6 percent shooting in the first (8-28).
• Both offenses came alive early in the second half, as the two teams scored 11 points in the opening 1:14 of the second half.
• With Northwood on top 36-32, the Timberwolves put up eight of the next 10 points to go up 44-34.
• Grace Christian got no closer than six the rest of the way.
• The Timberwolves lead grew to as many as 22 (77-55) before earning the 14-point win.
• After combining for 53 points in the first half, the two teams scored a total of 91 points after the break.

GAME STATS

• FG PERCENTAGE: Grace Christian .382 (21-55), Northwood .439 (29-66)
• 3-PT PERCENTAGE: Grace Christian .278 (5-18), Northwood .313 (10-32)
• FREE THROW PERCENTAGE: Grace Christian .783 (18-23), Northwood .688 (11-16)
• REBOUNDS: Grace Christian 27 (Eight offensive), Northwood 49 (19 offensive)
• ASSISTS/TURNOVERS: Grace Christian 10/13, Northwood 17/18

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Will Young II: 19 points (14 in the second half). 6-11 from the floor, 5-9 from 3-point range
• JT Morgan: 13 points, six rebounds
• Jamison Eklund: 10 points (all in the second half), seven rebounds
• Brayden Szamrej: Eight points, eight assists, three steals (first career start)
• Elijah Watson: Nine points, eight rebounds
• Nick Ellis: Seven points, five rebounds

UP NEXT

• The Timberwolves return to action January 2 against Lake Erie. Game time is set for 8 p.m.