Men's basketball team falls to Calvin, 84-78

The Olivet College men's basketball team fell to Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) foe Calvin College, 84-78, this afternoon at the Calvin Fieldhouse. The Fighting Comets move into a tie with the Knights for first-place in the MIAA standings with a 3-1 record.

In the first half, Olivet led by as many as six points on two occasions with the last time (17-11) being at the 12:31 mark when junior forward Ronnie Pearson (Holly High School) made a layup. Calvin scored the next six points to tie the game at 17-17 and eventually took their first lead of the game, 20-19, with 8:49 left.

Sophomore Steve Johnson (Detroit/Murray Wright High School) gave the Comets the lead back, 21-20. The Knights answered with back-to-back three-pointers to take the lead, which they held for the rest of the game.

Calvin opened the second half with an 8-3 run to extend its lead to nine points, 46-37, at the 16:27 mark. In just over one minute of action, Olivet scored the next seven points to cut the deficit to two points. The Comets were unable to get any closer for the remainder of the contest.

Sophomore forward De'Andre Pruitt (River Rouge High School) scored a career-high 29 points on 11-of-21 shooting from the floor, including five-of-11 from three-point range. He also grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds. Pearson and junior guard Thad Mitchner (Flint Central High School) contributed 14 and 11 points, respectively.

Olivet will next be in action on Wednesday, Jan. 25 when it hosts Hope College at 7:30 p.m.

Dan Aultman led the Knights with 30 points, followed by Ricky Shilts with 19 points. Ryan Smalligan was credited with a team-best nine rebounds and four blocks.