KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Kalamazoo College men's basketball team hosted Olivet in an MIAA matchup on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 21). The shots did not fall for the Hornets as the Comets won the game 73-56.
An early three gave Kalamazoo the lead, but that would only last for a while as Olivet was lethal from long range in the first half. The Comets went 10-20 for an even 50% shooting from beyond the three-point line. The was a stretch where Olivet hit seven threes in a row, helping build its lead up to double figures. The deficit at halftime for the Hornets was 16, as the team could only make seven field goals.
The hot shooting by the Comets cooled off in the second half, and that allowed Kalamazoo to trim the deficit to 10 at the 14:08 mark. But, unfortunately, that would be as low as it would get as Olivet steadily grew its lead back out to as much as 21 in the half. The Comets ended up with a 17-point win to sweep the season series.
Josh Decker was the leading scorer for the Hornets with 11 points to go along with his six rebounds. Caleb Caul also finished with double figures, scoring 10 points. DJ Courtney had a team-high seven rebounds and two assists.
Rounding out the scoring for the Hornets was Courtney (9), Ty Horky (7), Alex Rueff (5), Addison Atwater (3), Bobby Samples (3), JJ Stevens (2), Dougie Blackwood (2), Nicholas Olmeda (2), Carter Bandemer (1), and Sam Coleman (1). Olivet shot the ball at a 44.6% (25-56) rate compared to Kalamazoo's 28.1% (18-64). In addition, the Comets ended up with more rebounds (44-37), assists (14-12), and blocks (12-1), while Kalamazoo held a 7-2 advantage in steals.
Kalamazoo will continue MIAA play with another home game against Hope on Wednesday (Jan. 25), beginning at 7 p.m.