WAVERLY, Iowa – Wartburg men's basketball is set for the 2021-22 home opener at Levick Arena against Grinnell College on Tuesday. Nov. 16 with tipoff set for 7 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 16 – 7:00 p.m. – Waverly, Iowa – Levick Arena
Wartburg Knights (1-0, 0-0 A-R-C) vs Grinnell Pioneers (3-1, 0-0)
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Last Time Out
The Knights opened the season on Wednesday, Nov. 10 with an 85-70 win against Cornell College on the road. The game started with a six-point Wartburg run to jump out to an early lead and the Orange & Black would never give that lead up. As a team, Wartburg shot 45.7% from the field and 30% from three-point range in the first half. The offense was facilitated through guard
Jack Molstead, who had seven first half assists. Wartburg led Cornell 41-33 going into the half.
The Knights came out firing in the second half and would extend the lead to 15 points early. The lead ballooned to a high of 26 points in the second half. Wartburg finished the game with two free throws from Molstead to make it an 85-70 victory.
Stat Leaders
The leading scorer in the Knights' win was
Marshun Williams, who finished the game with 19 points. The sophomore forward shot 66.7% from the field and a perfect seven for seven from the free throw line.
Molstead finished the game with nine of the teams 15 total assists and added 11 points with four rebounds.
Davis Roquet and
Drew Olson both ended with nine rebounds each. Olson scored 18 points from 64% shooting and one for one on three-pointers. The senior also added two assists and made three out of four free throws. Roquet had seven points shooting two for six from the field and tacked on an assist. He was a perfect two for two from the free throw line tonight.
Wartburg shot 48.4% as a team from the field and 85% from the free throw line. The Orange & Black dominated points in the paint 44-24. The Knights outrebounded the Rams 52-26 and had an advantage in second chance points 11-2.
Grinnell
The Pioneers have won three straight games after starting the season with a 117-82 loss to Coe College. Over the three-game winning streak, Grinnell has averaged 127.34 points per game, including a 153-97 victory over Spurgeon College. In its last game, Grinnell defeated Lincoln Christian University 121-109 at home to move to three and one overall.
Grinnell relies heavily on its offense and pace of play. The Pioneers have 21 players with minutes played this season and they are averaging 19.2 three pointers per game as a team. Grinnell is also outrebounding opponents 55.8 to 53.3 so far this season.
Stat Leaders
Offensively, the Pioneers have three players averaging over 15 points per game through the first four games. Aiden Gilbert is the leading scorer with 20.5 points per game off 32.1% shooting from the field and 59.1% from the free throw line. Patrick Simms is averaging 18.5 points per game coming from 44.2% from the field and added seven assists per game and almost six rebounds per game. David Bluder is the third leading scorer with 15.8 points per game and is shooting 41.5% from the three-point line.
The leading rebounder for the Pioneers is Tommy Smith, who is averaging 9.3 rebounds per game and has also added seven blocks. Will Bebee leads Grinnell in blocks with 11 so far this season and Morgan Walser is the leader of steals with eight. The Pioneers are averaging 11.3 steals per game while holding opponents to under seven per game.
Series History
The first contest between these schools came in the 1954-55 season where Grinnell won 85-79. The Knights lead the all-time series 17-9 and have won the last three matchups.
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