WINONA LAKE, Ind. - The undefeated season continued for No. 2 Grace's men's basketball team on Tuesday.
The Lancers finished off an 89-70 victory over St. Xavier at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.
Grace enjoyed balanced production with seven players scoring at least eight points. Elijah Malone powered his way to 28 points and 10 rebounds for the Lancers (6-0).
The Lancers wasted little time building their lead to begin Tuesday's game. Grace made its first three shots to lead 7-2.
Back-to-back scores from Jakob Gibbs opened up a 13-4 lead. Two more quick scores handed Grace a 17-4 advantage.
The Lancers' onslaught continued. Brett Sickafoose buried two 3s in a 3-minute span, and Ian Raasch hit another trey as Grace sprinted ahead 28-6 with 8:26 left in the half.
Grace remained comfortably ahead for the rest of the half, cruising into halftime with a 43-25 lead. The Lancers shot 59 percent from the floor as a team while holding the Cougars to 34 percent shooting.
Eight players scored for Grace in the half. Malone led the way with nine points, and Ian Scott provided a boost off the bench with four points and four assists.
The Lancers had more paint points (28) in the half than SXU had overall points (25).
Malone began the second half on a tear. The sensational senior poured in 11 points over the first 2:37, helping push Grace's cushion up to 25.
The Lancers led by as many as 26 in the half, but the Cougars had one more push left with 10 minutes left in the game. SXU went on a 12-1 run which sliced Grace's lead down to 10 with 7:32 on the clock.
Grace quickly responded by scoring on its next six possessions. Malone hit a shot to begin the run, and Jake Wadding followed that up with a corner 3-pointer.
Cade Gibbs and Jakob Gibbs then scored, and Malone capped off Grace's response with a thunderous dunk.
SXU, on the other hand, was held to four points over that six-minute span.
The Lancers gradually pulled away down the stretch for the final 19-point win.
Grace shot a sizzling 59 percent from the floor, assisting on 27 of its 34 made field goals. The Cougars shot 45 percent as a team.
Malone shot 10 of 15 overall, including 7 of 7 from the foul line, for his game-high 28 points.
Cade Gibbs racked up 9 points, 8 boards, 5 assists, 1 block and 0 turnover, and Jakob Gibbs had 12 points and three boards.
Wadding tallied 9 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block, and Scott tallied nine points and five assists.
Raasch made all three of his shots for nine points, and Sickafoose tallied eight points.
Gage Sefton had five points and four assists, and Brycen Graber handed out four assists.
The Lancers will open up Crossroads League play over the next few weeks. Grace will travel to Indianapolis for a 2 p.m. clash at Marian.
