Newhof's 30 Leads Spring Arbor to Win Over No. 14 Grace

SPRING ARBOR, Mich. – Riding a seven-game winning streak, the Spring Arbor University men's basketball team returned home to the American 1 Credit Union Arena for its first big test of the Crossroads League slate against defending league champ Grace College. 

Both teams started slow, with the Cougars going up 4-0 early, before Grace responded with five straight to take the lead. That lead would be short lived for the Lancers however, as a Gabe Newhof bucket gave Spring Arbor the lead right back. The Cougars would not relinquish for the rest of the half, resulting in a seven-point lead at the break, 42-35. Newhof led the Cougars with 14 points in the half, while freshman David Cundiff stepped up in a big way in place of injured starting guard Travis Grayson with 13 points and four assists at the break.

The second half was similar to the first, as Grace would threaten the lead throughout the stanza, trimming the deficit to as low as two, but that was as close as they would get. The Cougars would extend their lead to double digits in the last five minutes, as Grace couldn't muster up a late rally, and the Cougars coasted to a massive early season win, 76-61.

SCORE: Spring Arbor 76, Grace 61

LOCATION: Spring Arbor, Mich. | American 1 Credit Union Arena

RECORDS: Spring Arbor 9-1 (3-0 CL), Grace 7-3 (2-1 CL) 

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

• Gabe Newhof showed up in a huge way, leading the Cougars with his second 30-point game of the season. Newhof also recorded four rebounds, four assists, and a block.
• Joining Newhof in double figures was David Cundiff, who made his presence known all over the court in his second career start, with 15 points, five rebounds, eight assists, three steals and a block.
• Other key contributors were Dante Favor and Kevyn Robertson, who each chipped in nine points apiece. Favor also contributed seven boards and two assists, while Robertson added six boards and two steals.
• The leading scorer for Grace was Gage Sefton, who had 18 points on 4-of-9 shooting, while also going a perfect 10-for-10 from the charity stripe.

TEAM STATS

Points off Turnovers: Grace 14, Spring Arbor 10

2nd Chance Points: Grace 7, Spring Arbor 13

Bench Points: Grace 5, Spring Arbor 7

Points in Paint: Grace 34, Spring Arbor 46 

UP NEXT

The Cougars will travel to Marion, Indiana for another ranked league matchup against No. 13 Indiana Wesleyan University on Saturday, Dec. 7. Tip-off will be at 6 p.m.