December 2, 2015

Grove City humbles W&J in league opener, 63-41

WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The Grove City College men's basketball team opened its Presidents' Athletic Conference schedule Wednesday night by rolling to a 63-41 victory at Washington & Jefferson in the Henry Memorial Center.

Grove City's iron clad defense limited the Presidents to just 16 first-half points and forced 21 turnovers for the game. Grove City also held W&J to a 15-for-47 (31 percent) shooting performance from the field, including a 6-for-25 effort in the first half.

Offensively, three Grove City players scored in double figures. Senior guard Stephen Tam (Hamilton, Mass./Hamilton-Wenham) and sophomore forward Andrew Beckman (Shelby, Mich./Shelby) both poured in 11 points while junior forward Tyler McGrath (Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) added 10 points.

Beckman also blocked three shots while Tam and senior guard Caleb Knudsen (Saylorsburg, Pa./Pius X) each distributed four assists. Sophomore center Cory Huff (Kersey, Pa./Elk County Catholic) pulled down eight rebounds while Knudsen had seven boards to help Grove City own a 45-26 edge on the glass.

Sophomore guard Seth Muck (Avon Lake, Ohio/Avon Lake) recorded a career-high five steals while Tam had three thefts. Grove City tallied a season-high 15 steals.

Grove City (4-2, 1-0) led 27-16 at halftime. W&J eventually trimmed the lead to 45-38 with 6:41 remaining but the Wolverines sealed the win by scoring 14 straight points. Tam scored the first five points of the run while Beckman followed with a three-point play. Freshman guard Brandon Grider (Canton, Ohio/GlenOak) hit a pair of free throws while consecutive baskets by Muck and Knudsen closed the blitz.

Christian Rohaus led W&J (0-6, 0-1) with 14 points.

The 41 points marks the lowest scoring output by a Wolverine opponent since January 29, 2011, when Grove City earned a 46-39 win at Waynesburg.

Grove City will open its home schedule Saturday against Waynesburg at 3 p.m.

Box Score