There’s one other tournament going on this week, at Grace College, where eight Christian schools are in the mix for a title, including one of our regional members, which got off to a good start in its opening-round game:
ROBERTS WESLEYAN 70 PIEDMONT INTERNATIONAL 60
An 18-0 second-half burst was the difference for Roberts Wesleyan, which rallied to beat Piedmont International in the first leg of the National Christian Colleges Athletics Association’s championship tournament in Winona Park, Indiana. Peyton McLaurin pumped in 23 points (10-14 FG, 2-2 from deep), including the last five of said run as the Redhawks transformed a 39-37 deficit into a 55-39 advantage with 9:10 to play. The Bruins – out of Winston-Salem, North Carolina – used a 21-9 counter-run to pull withi 64-60 after two free throws from Tamir Glenn (23 points, 15 rebounds, five assists) with 1:43 left, but it was all Roberts after that, as Justin Vaughan (16 points) sank a pair of free throws with 55 seconds remaining to kick-start a 6-0, game-ending flourish. The second-seeded Redhawks – who also landed Fope Okuyiga in double figures with 10 points and nine rebounds – shot better overall (44%-33%), offsetting a 19-6 shortfall in turnover points. They will next face 3-seed Hannibal-LaGrange (MO) in the tournament semifinals on Thursday.