Upset Bid of #6 Grace Christian Comes Up Short

ANKENY, Iowa—It was a tale of two halves Monday night as Faith's efforts to knock off sixth-ranked Grace Christian University fell just short. The Eagles dominated the first twenty minutes to build a 15-point halftime lead, but the Tigers flipped the script in the second half for a 94-89 victory.

Chris Barnette made a dazzling home debut for the Eagles, finishing with 37 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 assists. Twenty three of those points came in the first half as Faith scorched the nets as a team, shooting 58.8% for the half (7-of-14 from three point distance). The Eagles built an eight-point lead midway through the half until the Tigers mounted a run to regain the lead with 8:06 remaining. Faith finished the half the way it started it, capping a 26-9 run with a Seth Freeman three-pointer to bump its lead to 15 as a fired-up and confident Eagles squad headed for the locker room with all the momentum.

Neither team was able to gain an advantage in the opening minutes of the second half as both remained scoreless for the first two-and-a-half minutes. After a Tigers basket, GCU started to lock down Barnette on defense, foul trouble mounted for starting guard Jayce Goergen, and the Eagles' lead slowly deteriorated, with Grace regaining the lead on back-to-back three pointers with 8 minutes to play. That momentum shift was all Grace needed to take control of the rest of the game, despite a valiant last-minute effort by the Eagles.

Faith was outrebounded 25-16 in the second half, while Grace recorded 13 assists on 17 made baskets. Four Eagles finished in double figures with 37 from Barnette, 15 from Logan Fincham, 14 from Seth Freeman, and 12 from Jared Pearson.

With the loss, the Eagles fell to 3-3 on the season. The Faith Christmas Classic awaits with a pair of weekend games before the long Christmas break. Faith plays Trinity Bible College (3-6) at 8 p.m. on Friday, and Maranatha Baptist University (0-9) at 4 p.m. on Saturday. Fans who wear green or red receive free admission to Saturday's game, along with free pop and popcorn.