By Caitlin Phelan
The Grand Rapids Community College men’s basketball team fell short to Bay College 72-99, with Coach Fox out of action. Fox had to stay in town this weekend in anticipation of the birth of his child. The game took place in Escanaba on Saturday, Feb. 11. After Saturday’s loss, the Raiders fell to 15-7 overall and 4-5 in conference play.
In light of Coach Fox’s absence, the Raiders were led by Fox’s assistant coach, Coach DeQuaveon Stuckey in Saturday’s game. When Fox was talking about Stuckey’s role, he said, “I thought he did a great job when I was able to watch.”
The Raider men struggled offensively, starting the game slow and finishing the game shooting only 37.9% from the field.
“We just got off to a slow start and had to fight back the rest of the game,” Stuckey said.
Despite their offensive struggles, GRCC went into halftime down by only 14. The Raiders did fight back however, starting the second half on a 13-3 run. This brought the game within four points, but ultimately it wasn’t enough to keep up with Bay College.
Bay College led throughout the whole game, and dominated the boards, out-rebounding the Raiders 51-35. Bay College also controlled the paint, scoring 52 points, compared to the Raiders mere 28 points in the paint. When talking about Bay College’s performance, Stuckey said, “Bay College is very aggressive, crashing for rebounds and they also have great size.”
The Raiders were led in scoring by sophomore forward Herman Brown, who came off the bench. Brown finished the game with 16 points and six rebounds. “Herman came in with energy, got off to a good start, and made timely shots,” Stuckey said.
Sophomore’s Chris Coleman and Danyel Bibbs were the only other Raiders to score in double figures. Bibbs recorded 11 points, three rebounds, and three assists, while Coleman finished the game with 10 points.
The Raider men have two upcoming games this week that will take place at Ford Fieldhouse. The first matchup is against rival Muskegon Community College, which is slated to begin Wednesday, Feb. 15, at 7:30 p.m., and the second matchup is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 16, at 6:30 p.m. against Aquinas College JV.
“I’m really excited to get back in the gym for the home games this week,” Fox said.
