Ranked 25th in the latest D3hoops.com Top-25 poll, Calvin improved to 18-5 overall with the victory but more importantly to 10-1 in the MIAA, one game ahead of rival Hope which improved to 9-2 in the MIAA with a victory at Adrian on Wednesday.
With one week left in the regular season, Calvin needs a win over Albion or Kalamazoo to clinch a share of the final MIAA regular season crown. Calvin plays host to Albion on Wednesday (7:30 pm) and to Kalamazoo on Saturday (3:00 pm).
In its game with Olivet (6-17 overall, 2-10 MIAA), Calvin took a 34-32 halftime lead after rolling off a 10-2 run over the final 1:48 of the first half.
Calvin opened the second half with a 17-6 surge to take a 51-38 lead with 13:52 remaining. Olin countered with a 12-1 run over the next three minutes however to creep to within two at 52-50 with 10:32 left to play.
Holding on to a 56-53 lead with 7:22 remaining, Calvin went to freshman Caleb Veldhouse and Veldhouse delivered, converting a pair of free throws and drilling a clutch three-pointer after a layup by teammate Eric DeVries moments before. The Veldhouse triple gave Calvin a 10-point lead at 63-53 and the double-digit lead would hold the rest of the way as the Knights reeled off 12 unanswered points over a four-minute stretch to seal the win.
Junior center Josh Meckes led the way for Calvin with 17 points, converting all seven of his field goal attempts including a dunk the first half. Meckes was one of four Calvin players to reach double-digits in scoring as Veldhouse and seniors Andy Draayer and Kyle Trewhella chipped in with 12 points apiece.
Trewhella finished with four assists against just one turnover while also blocking a shot. Veldhouse also had four assists while Draayer had four rebounds and three assists. Junior forward Kyle Snoeyink also played an integral role, ripping down a game-high 11 rebounds while also contributing eight points.
As a team, Calvin shot 45.5 percent from the floor including 52.2 percent in the second half. The Knights also held a 10-point advantage at the free throw line as they converted 16 of 22 attempts from the charity stripe while Olivet was six of nine at the line.
Olivet was led in defeat by De’Andre Pruitt who tossed in 14 points while Ellington Fields had 13 and Steve Johnson 10.
Newspaper Box Score Calvin College vs Olivet College 02/11/06 3 p.m. at Upton Center; Olivet, Mich. At Upton Center; Olivet, Mich. CALVIN COLLEGE 71, OLIVET COLLEGE 61 CALVIN COLLEGE (18-5, 11-1 MIAA) Josh Meckes 7-7 3-5 17; Caleb Veldhouse 2-6 6-6 12; Kyle Trewhella 4-9 3-5 12; Andy Draayer 3-12 4-4 12; Kyle Snoeyink 4-9 0-1 8; Eric DeVries 3-4 0-0 6; Tyler Zoerhof 2-3 0-1 4; Micah Chappell 0-2 0-0 0; Kevin Prins 0-0 0-0 0; Dustin Smith 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 25-55 16-22 71. OLIVET COLLEGE (6-17, 2-10 MIAA) De'Andre Pruitt 5-13 2-4 14; Ellington Fields 5-12 0-1 13; Steve Johnson 5-10 0-0 10; Greg Ravy 2-6 4-4 9; Gerald Dozie 3-6 0-0 7; Matt Ponik 1-4 0-0 3; Derek Kurtz 1-7 0-0 3; Eric McCoy 1-1 0-0 2; Antonio Higginbotham 0-2 0-0 0; John Djurovski 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-61 6-9 61. Calvin College................ 34 37 - 71 Olivet College................ 32 29 - 61 3-point goals-Calvin College 5-15 (Caleb Veldhouse 2-5; Andy Draayer 2-6; Kyle Trewhella 1-3; Dustin Smith 0-1), Olivet College 9-24 (Ellington Fields 3-5; De'Andre Pruitt 2-7; Greg Ravy 1-3; Gerald Dozie 1-1; Matt Ponik 1-3; Derek Kurtz 1-4; Antonio Higginbotham 0-1). Fouled out--Calvin College-None, Olivet College-Derek Kurtz. Rebounds-Calvin College 38 (Kyle Snoeyink 11), Olivet College 34 (Gerald Dozie 6; Greg Ravy 6). Assists-Calvin College 12 (Kyle Trewhella 4; Caleb Veldhouse 4), Olivet College 14 (Derek Kurtz 4). Total fouls-Calvin College 15, Olivet College 20. A-785