The Kuyper College Men's Basketball program traveled across town to take on their rival, Grace Christian University, on Wednesday evening. The Cougars defeated the Tigers by a final score of 80-71. This match-up was for the Cross Cup Trophy, a traveling trophy that the Tigers and Cougars play for once each season. The trophy will return to the campus of Kuyper College for the first time since 2011. 

The rivalry has added a new dimension over the past few seasons, as Grace Christian Hall of Famer, Coach Gary Bailey, is the Head Coach of Kuyper College. Bailey coached 17 seasons at Grace Christian and led the Tigers to 7 NCCAA II National Championships. His former player, and 4x National Champion, Ryan Krombeen, is the Head Coach at Grace Christian. The Kuyper and Grace Christian rivalry match-up fills the gymnasium each time, and last night was no different.

The first half was a back and forth game with multiple lead changes. However, a late push to end the half gave the Cougars a 40-33 lead at the halftime break. The lead never changed hands in the second half, despite Grace Christian cutting the lead to 2 points in the second half. Kuyper went on to win 80-71. 

Kuyper was led by junior guard Elijah Searcy, who had a career night. Elijah Searcy poured in a career-high 27 points on 5 made threes (also a career-high). He added 6 rebounds. Jashaun Boggerty added a career-high 19 points as well. Latrell Jennings also reached double-figures for the Cougars, as he scored 12 points and grabbed 7 rebounds. Searcy and Boggerty both came off the bench, so the Cougars won the bench scoring battle 47-14. 

Despite great performances from Searcy and Boggerty, Grace Christian hung around all evening. Grace Christian forced 22 Kuyper turnovers, and they also grabbed 16 offensive rebounds, leading to 17 second chance points for the Tigers. Kuyper's defense was able to prevent those second chance opportunities and turnovers from plaguing them. The Cougars limited the Tigers to just 33.3% from the field and 25.9% from three. Austin Stone, who scored 8 points for the Cougars, anchored the defense and was affecting shots all evening. 

Nick Moore and Nic Yorke played good all-around games for Kuyper as well. Yorke scored 7 points and grabbed 7 rebounds, while Nick Moore led the Cougars with a team-high 8 rebounds. 

Kuyper Head Coach Gary Bailey had this to say about the win: "We've worked very hard for the past ten days getting ready for this game. The guys have dedicated a lot of time outside of practice on scouting reports and game film. Although we weren't anywhere near perfect with 22 turnovers, I think the team took a positive step towards finishing games. More importantly, we got the win while doing so. It was a really fun night for the team and the fans." 

The Cougars improve to 3-3 on the season and 2-1 in the NCCAA II. This was Kuyper's first regional match-up of the season, so they are 1-0 in the NCCAA II Midwest Region. The Cougars host Judson University on Friday, November 14th, at 7:00pm.