Story by Mitch Blankespoor
HOLLAND, Mich. – The Kalamazoo College men's basketball team dropped a 76-51 decision at Hope College in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) play Monday (Feb. 3) evening.
"We got down 10 points early on," Kalamazoo Head Coach Eric Dougal said. "You can't do that against a good team like Hope. Despite the start, our kids fought hard."
Junior forward Adam Peters led the way for Kalamazoo with 22 points and 11 rebounds in defeat. Freshman forward Chase Baysdell added 11 pints while junior Carter Goetz tallied nine points.
Kalamazoo senior guard Mark Ghafari sustained an injury late in the first half and would not return. The Grosse Pointe Woods native finished with eight points.
Hope gained a 23-12 advantage nine minutes into the game when Alex Eidson connected on one of his six 3-pointers. The sophomore guard finished with a career-high 27 points to lead Hope.
Kalamazoo trailed 41-29 at halftime, but cut the lead to eight points (49-41) when Peters connected on a 10-foot jump shot.
"He [Peters] played a ton of minutes and played his tail off," Dougal said. "He gave us a chance to win with the way he played defense and the way he rebounded."
Eidson then drilled another 3-pointer and was fouled. After making the free throw, Hope's lead was suddenly up to 13 points.
Kalamazoo would get the Hope lead down to 10 points with nine minutes to play, but could get no closer.
Despite being outsized in the front court, Kalamazoo grabbed 45 rebounds to Hope's 40. The biggest difference in the game came from behind the arc. Kalamazoo connected on a season low 1-12 3-pointers while Hope made 10-25.
With the loss, Kalamazoo drops to 9-10 on the season and 4-4 in the MIAA. The Hornets now sit tied for fourth place with Trine University and will play again Wednesday, Feb. 5 against Olivet. The game is scheduled for an 8:00 p.m. tip-off at the Anderson Athletic Center.