Ten Best: Oskaloosa (66) at Grinnell (77)
Sam Allen was sensational for Grinnell, scoring 37 points, going 12-20 from the floor Grinnell 77, Oskaloosa 66 A sensational effort from a pair of Grinnell senior stars helped the Tigers withstand a furious run from a young, but very…
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Continue ReadingGrinnell 77, Oskaloosa 66
A sensational effort from a pair of Grinnell senior stars helped the Tigers withstand a furious run from a young, but very talented, Oskaloosa team en route to a 77-66 home win on Friday night.
A close game throughout the first half, the teams went back and forth for the first 16 minutes before a late Grinnell run gave them a 37-30 edge heading into the locker rooms. The Tigers then started the third quarter with an 11-4 run to get the lead up to 14, and that margin climbed as high as 20 during the quarter, before a late Oskaloosa push, spurred by a 12-2 run, closed the game to 59-47 after three.
The fourth quarter was all Oskaloosa early on, with the Indians going on an 11-0 run to trim Grinnell’s lead to just one, 59-58, with 6:07 left. Out of the timeout, Grinnell got a bucket from Cade McKnight, followed by a steal and a bucket from Sam Allen, pushing the lead back to five, and Oskaloosa never got any closer.
Grinnell (3-1, 1-1) was led by Sam Allen, who had 37 points, to go with five rebounds and six assists. Cade McKnight added 29 points of his own, with six rebounds and three blocks for the Tigers. Oskaloosa (4-1, 1-1) was led by Cole Henry and Jarad Kruse, who each had 15. Henry added eight rebounds. Jack Moore (13) and Spencer Tucker (10) also got into double figures for Oskaloosa.
Scoring
Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | F |
Oskaloosa | 16 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 66 |
Grinnell | 18 | 19 | 22 | 18 | 77 |
Oskaloosa: Cole Henry 15, Jarad Kruse 15, Jack Moore 13, Spencer Tucker 10, Xavier Foster 7, Tucker Nunnikhoven 7
Grinnell: Sam Allen 37, Cade McKnight 29, Ethan Mitchell 6, Jake Hull 3, Lucas Scherf 2
MVP: Sam Allen (Grinnell)
Cade McKnight was also great for the Tigers, but it was Allen who really got everything going for Grinnell. He not only scored 37 points, he dished out six assists and pulled down five rebounds. And he did his scoring fairly efficiently, scoring those 37 on just 20 field goal attempts. He scored from everywhere, and looks like a much better ball handler and driver than in previous seasons, where he did a large chunk of his scoring on jumpers.
Play of the game: Cade McKnight’s bucket out of the timeout, early fourth quarter
Oskaloosa had just cut the Grinnell lead to one with an 11-0 run to start the fourth quarter. Grinnell took a timeout, and McKnight responded on the ensuing possession with a nice move in the post, then finished for a bucket to stop the bleeding. Seconds later, Allen came away with a steal that he took in for a layup, pushing Grinnell’s lead to five. Oskaloosa never got any closer.
Best offensive performance: Sam Allen (Grinnell)
As mentioned in the MVP section, Allen was fantastic on the offensive end. He scored from everywhere, got his teammates involved and was nearly impossible to stop on dribble drive.
Best defensive performance: Cade McKnight (Grinnell)
McKnight was great on the offensive end as well, but his defense against Oskaloosa’s Cole Henry was commendable. He blocked three shots and helped “limit” Henry to 15 points on 7-13 shooting. Special mention to Xavier Foster, who also blocked three shots for Oskaloosa.
Best intangibles: Spencer Tucker (Oskaloosa)
The Indians point guard is a treat to watch, combining a variety of ball fakes and fancy dribbling to free up space for himself to get shots off, despite being listed at just 5-9. He’s a good passer with great court vision, and the way he controls the ball is a treat to watch.
Best shooter: Sam Allen (Grinnell)
Largely known in previous years for his shooting prowess, Allen has certainly expanded his all-around offensive game, now getting to the rim much more frequently. The scary thing about that is that it helps open up his jumper, which is still deadly. He knocked in three of six attempts from the arc, and hit a few mid-range jumpers as well. He’s got a great release on his shot, gets good rotation and is a very good shooter off the dribble.
Best underclassman: Cole Henry (Oskaloosa)
The hype with the Oskaloosa program is with freshman Xavier Foster, who has become a national prospect (Baylor was there to watch him on Friday night). But Foster is still young, and while there are definitely tools there, he’s got a lot of improvement still to come. Henry was very good in this one, scoring 15 points and pulling down nine rebounds, right in line with his season averages. He’s got a good face-up game, showing the ability to score with the jumper or by putting the ball on the floor and getting to the rim. As he continues to fill out physically, he’ll be a force on both ends of the floor.
Oddest moment: The opening tip leads to a double jump ball
In a first for me, the opening tip between Oskaloosa’s Cole Henry and Grinnell’s Cade McKnight ended up in the hands of Tanner DeKock (Oskaloosa) and Ethan Mitchell (Grinnell), resulting in a jump ball. Since neither team had claimed the possession arrow yet, we had a second jump ball, this time between the two guards. We went from a jump between a 6-8 and 6-9 player to a jump between a 5-10 and a 6-0 player, which was won by DeKock.
Best player off the bench: Xavier Foster (Oskaloosa)
The talented young freshman jumps out immediately with the size, length and the way he moves on the floor. He’s still got a long ways to go in his development, but he showed glimpses of brilliance here. When he first checked into the game, he made an immediate impact by hitting a free throw line jumper on one end, then coming down and emphatically blocking a shot on the defensive end.
Story to watch moving forward: How far can Grinnell’s dynamic duo take them?
Sam Allen and Cade McKnight are fantastic basketball players, and they give Grinnell a great inside-out duo. Ethan Mitchell is a nice complimentary piece who is averaging over 13 points a game despite struggling in this contest (six points on 1-of-9 from the floor). But just how far can the Allen/McKnight combination take this Grinnell team?