WYOMING, Mich.— Despite a strong second half push from the Sabercats, Maranatha couldn't put a stop to their opponents' hot hand. The Tigers shot over 50 percent in each half, with 33 points coming from long range. Grace ended the night with a 93-67 win, with six individuals finishing in double-digits.

Will Shultz finished with 15 points and eight rebounds, leading the Sabercats in both categories on the night. Chris Orsello also finished in double-digits for the Sabercats (14) followed by Jumauca Golliday who put up 11 points and four rebounds in his collegiate debut for Maranatha. 

OVERVIEW

• Result: Maranatha 67-93 Grace 
• Venue: Aldrich Athletic Center - Grace Christian University
• Location: Wyoming, Michigan
• Event: NCCAA Midwest Region - Regular Season
• Records: MBU (1-11), GCU (7-13)

STORY 

Maranatha fought to keep things close from the start, but an early heat up from behind the arc for Graces allowed the Tigers to build a cushion into halftime. Shooting 7 for 14 from three-point range in the first half, Grace was able to jump out to a 44-27 lead.

But the Sabercats still had a bit of fight left in them as they came out scoring almost double the amount of points they had in the first, improving their shooting percentage from 36.6 to 45.5 percent.

Unfortunately, Grace continued to hit shots from all over the court finishing with an impressive 56.1 field percentage on the night, and Maranatha was left trailing 67-93 at the final buzzer. 

Jumauca Golliday and Jonathan Fuller both earned their first minutes on the court in a Sabercat uniform, having just recently joined at the start of the new semester. Golliday finished with 11 points and 4 rebounds and Fuller chipped in 4 points and 2 rebounds. 
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Maranatha Starters: 2- Cox (C), 10- Shank, 21- Brock, 24- Orsello, 30- Schultz 

STATS

• MBU shot 41.3 percent from the field
• GCU shot 56.1 percent from the field
• W. Shultz: 15 PTS, 8 REB, 2 AST
• C. Orsello: 14 PTS, 2 REB
• J. Golliday: 11 PTS, 4 REB
• Last time: Grace defeated Maranatha 96-63 last season on January 27, 2024
• Series: Maranatha trails the all-time series against Grace Christian 10-28

OPPONENTS

• Grace Christian competes in the NCCAA Midwest Region along with Maranatha
• Grace Christian finished the '23-24 season with a 18-14 record
• Grace Christian won the NCCAA Midwest Regional Tournament last year, but fell in the National first round to North Central University.

NEXT

The Sabercats stay in Michigan to take on Great Lakes Christian in another Midwest Regional match-up, tomorrow at 7 PM EST. Follow at mbusabercats.com/schedule.