The victory was the seventh in eight tries for the Knights who improved to 9-4 overall.
Calvin shot just 37 percent from the field on Saturday but came up with the plays when it needed to down the stretch. Senior Kyle Trewhella bagged a three-pointer with just over six minutes remaining to give Calvin a 59-56 lead and the Knights would never trail again.
Still battling the affects of a flu bug that sidelined him for Wednesday’s game at Tri-State, junior Josh Meckes also connected on a key baseline jumper that bounced high off the rim and down through the hoop with 50 seconds to play that gave the Knights a 63-58 advantage. Freshman Caleb Veldhouse followed with a free throw with 21 ticks left that gave Calvin a 64-60 lead. Alma (8-5 overall, 1-1 MIAA) then missed three shots in the closing seconds including a pair of three-point field goal attempts as Calvin held on for the win.
Trewhella led Calvin with 17 points on 7-for-14 shooting while also dishing out four assists against just one turnover in 29 minutes of action. Meckes battled through 23 minutes of playing time to collect nine points, eight rebounds, three steals, two blocks and a pair of assists while freshman Dustin Smith tossed in a career-high nine points off the bench.
Bench scoring had been at a premium for most of Calvin’s non-conference slate but in Saturday night’s game with Alma, Calvin’s reserves scored 24 of its 64 points
Calvin also held a 42-38 rebounding advantage while holding Alma to 38 percent field goal shooting.
Alma was led in scoring by Mike Murphy who chalked up 14 points while Drew Barnhart had 11 points and Cory Massey and Greg Nelson 10 points apiece.
Calvin returns to action next Wednesday when it hosts Adrian at 7:30 p.m.
Newspaper Box Score Alma College vs Calvin College 1/07/06 7:30pm at Grand Rapids, MI At Grand Rapids, MI CALVIN COLLEGE 64, ALMA COLLEGE 60 ALMA COLLEGE (8-5, 1-1 MIAA) Mike Murphy 6-15 0-0 14; Drew Barnhart 3-9 3-4 11; Greg Nelson 4-9 0-0 10; Cory Massey 4-9 1-1 10; Carl Hill 2-8 0-0 4; Fred Anthony 1-3 1-2 3; Bener Sen 1-2 1-2 3; Nate Jervey 1-2 0-0 3; David McNally 1-1 0-0 2; Isaac Smith 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 23-60 6-9 60. CALVIN COLLEGE (9-4, 2-0 MIAA) Kyle Trewhella 7-14 1-1 17; Dustin Smith 3-5 3-3 9; Josh Meckes 4-7 1-1 9; Eric DeVries 2-5 2-2 6; Andy Draayer 2-9 0-0 5; Kyle Snoeyink 2-9 0-0 5; Tyler Zoerhof 2-4 0-0 4; Caleb Veldhouse 1-10 1-3 4; Micah Chappell 1-3 1-1 3; Kevin Prins 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 25-67 9-11 64. Alma College.................. 28 32 - 60 Calvin College................ 28 36 - 64 3-point goals-Alma College 8-28 (Mike Murphy 2-7; Greg Nelson 2-7; Drew Barnhart 2-4; Nate Jervey 1-2; Cory Massey 1-2; Isaac Smith 0-1; Bener Sen 0-1; Carl Hill 0-4), Calvin College 5-20 (Kyle Trewhella 2-5; Andy Draayer 1-6; Kyle Snoeyink 1-1; Caleb Veldhouse 1-5; Tyler Zoerhof 0-1; Micah Chappell 0-2). Fouled out--Alma College-None, Calvin College-None. Rebounds-Alma College 38 (Carl Hill 10), Calvin College 42 (Josh Meckes 8). Assists-Alma College 12 (Greg Nelson 4), Calvin College 15 (Kyle Trewhella 4). Total fouls-Alma College 13, Calvin College 12. A-1602