ONU wins CCAC opener easily, Grinnell takes a loss on the road

Anyone who ever has read this blog knows how The System allows a coach, and a team, to spread the love among the entire roster. And by love I mean points, rebounds, assists and steals. You know, playing time, run. It is one of the beauties of this style, and easily my favorite facet.

Sure, I love the 3-pointers, and the high scoring, yet the most perfect part of teams employing this is how so many players are a part of any success. The NAIA women's team at Olivet Nazarene proved this again Tuesday night.

The Tigers trailed only twice -- the final time at 9-8 -- and pulled away in the second half to beat Roosevelt University 120-84 in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference. It was ONU's first CCAC game; the Lakers had won their first conference game, beating St. Francis 87-66 last Saturday.

Here is what the Tigers (13-4, 1-0 CCAC) did:

- Attempted 94 shots
- Attempted 56 3-pointers
- Rebounded 38 percent of the misses on offense
- Forced 39 turnovers
- Attempted 12 more shots than Roosevelt (12-6, 1-1)

Individually, the numbers speak for themselves. ONU sent 16 players on the court at one time or another, each for at least 8 minutes and no one for more than 15. Seven different players scored in double figures, led by Miranda Geever's 16 points and followed by Danielle Pipal (14), Malory Adam (14), Holly Schact (12), Lexie Heinold (12), Stephanie Denius (12) and Simone Coburn (11). Three players -- Geever, Rachel Kearney and Lisa Beyer -- finished with four steals apiece. Five different players totaled at least five rebounds, led by seven from Denius. Oh, and three players made four 3-pointers apiece (Schacht, Adam and Heinold).

Amazing, right? Nice effort for coach Doug Porter and his team. They stay in the CCAC with a trip to St. Francis on Saturday, with the opening tip scheduled for 7 p.m. EST. The best of luck to the Tigers.

At Grinnell, the NCAA Division III men's team fell behind early and never really recovered, losing on the road to Illinois College 104-92 in the Midwest Conference on Tuesday. The Blueboys (9-2, 5-1 MWC) shot 62.5 percent for the game and led by at least 10 points over the final 14 minutes or so.

Here are the numbers for the Pioneers (7-4, 2-4):

- Attempted 89 shots
- Attempted 51 3-pointers
- Rebounded 40 percent of the misses on offense
- Forced 28 turnovers
- Attempted 25 more shots that Illinois College

Patrick Maher led Grinnell with 24 points, followed by Aaron Levin (21 points, all on his seven 3s) and Griffin Lentsch (16). The Pioneers host conference foe Lawrence on Friday, followed by a visit from Carroll on Saturday. Here's hoping coach David Arseneault and his team get it going again. I'll let you know how it goes.