CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA – The Grand View men's basketball team defeated the Mount Mercy Mustangs 83-70 on Tuesday night at Hennessey Rec Center, holding off a late rally to secure the road victory.
The opening half saw both teams battle back and forth.
Jaxson Young got the Vikings on the board first with a layup to give Grand View a 2-0 lead, and
Matthew Watters added another to make it 4-0. Mount Mercy responded as the Mustangs scored to give them a brief 5-4 lead.
Joe Knutson answered with a layup to put Grand View back ahead 6-5, but the Mustangs knocked down a three-pointer to take an 8-6 advantage. Mount Mercy added another three-pointer to extend the lead to 11-6, but Knutson and
Lukas Helms scored to bring the Vikings within one at 10-11.
Carson Bennett drained a three-pointer assisted by Young to give Grand View a 13-11 lead, and Watters added a layup to make it 15-12. Knutson continued his strong play with another layup to push the lead to 17-12, but the Mustangs hit a three-pointer to cut it to 17-15. Young converted a jumper to make it 19-15, and
Daviyon Gaston added a jumper assisted by Helms to extend the lead to 21-15. Gaston scored again to push it to 23-15, but Mount Mercy connected on a three-pointer to bring them within five at 23-18. Young hit a jumper to make it 25-20, but the Mustangs battled back with a three-pointer, giving them a one shot lead at 26-25. Young answered with a layup to give the Vikings a 27-26 lead, and Bennett hit a crucial three-pointer assisted by Gaston to push it to 30-26. Gaston added a layup and free throw to extend the advantage to 33-26, and Knutson capped the half with a layup assisted by Young in the final seconds to give Grand View a 35-29 halftime lead.
The Vikings came out strong in the second half. Watters opened the period with a layup to extend the lead to 37-29, and Helms knocked down a three-pointer assisted by Gaston to make it 40-31. Gaston hit another three-pointer assisted by Knutson to push the advantage to 43-33, and Helms added another triple assisted by Young to extend it to 46-33. Gaston continued his strong play with a three-pointer assisted by Watters to make it 49-35, and Young converted a jumper and free throw to push the lead to 52-35. The Vikings' lead reached 20 points as Young scored a layup assisted by Helms and Helms converted two free throws to make it 56-35. However, Mount Mercy refused to go away. The Mustangs went on a run with back-to-back three-pointers to cut the deficit to 58-45, and continued to chip away at the lead. The Vikings responded as Gaston hit free throws and a jumper to extend the lead back to 68-56, but the Mustangs kept fighting. Young converted multiple free throws down the stretch to maintain the cushion, and Knutson added a layup to make it 81-68. Mount Mercy continued to battle late, but Young sealed the victory with two more free throws in the final minute. Grand View held on for an 83-70 victory.
GAME NOTES:
- Jaxson Young put up 25 points on 8-13 shooting, going 9-9 from the stripe and added 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
- Daviyon Gaston recorded 22 points on 8 of 14 shooting while adding 8 rebounds and 3 assists.
- Joe Knutson added 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks.
WHATS NEXT?
The Vikings travel to Peru, Nebraska to take on the Peru State Wildcats on Saturday, December 6th.
