All it took for the Grand Rapids Christian Unified Basketball Team to get cooking from the perimeter was a return to the friendly confines and soft rims of the Quest Center.  The Eagles road a hot shooting night to more than double their scoring output (24 points) from Friday’s OT game at Kenowa Hills.  The result was a 51 to 42 victory over the Bulldogs from Grandville.

The first period 14 point offensive assault was spearheaded by a variety of quality assists via the partner duos of Payton Holtz / Andrew Schepel and Hannah Grace Wildschut / Micah Small.  Some sweet setups for the baseline diva Faith Kelly and newest hot shot Joash Mallick sandwiched a much needed three point bucket by rifleman Isaac Muller.  The extra shooting practice led by Coach Slotsma during focus time is really starting to show dividends for the team.

The remainder of the first half showcased the lightning speed of our middle school 50 meter sprint specialist Yang Feng Wildschut.  Receiving crisp outlet passes from teammates Kiera Porte and Ella Wolters, YF quickly navigated the 94 feet as if he had grease on his sneakers and finished nicely at the cup.  The Eagles took a 10 point lead into the half. 

However, basketball is a game of runs and the Bulldogs countered with a big third period of their own knotting the game at 36.  Luckily for the Eagles, we were able to deploy “the closers” line consisting of Adia Sikkema, Jake Koetje and the Big Guy Max Damstra.  Working in a three foot semi-circle of the hoop, Damstra cleaned up bucket after bucket.  Sprinkle in another top of the key triple by Muller and the Eagles turned out the lights with a 9-0 spurt to take the 51-42 victory.  After the game, overheard in the Eagle huddle was a quote from Coach Muller’s fourth grade Southern Little League Coach – “this team might be small and slow but we are also 4 and 0.”

The Eagle team would like to thank the large flock of fans today that helped us set a new 3:00 tip off attendance record with 304 spectators.  Looking forward to our first prime time match up next week against the Holland Christian Maroons.  Go Eagles!