The Basics
Final: Grand View 97, (RV) Evangel 84 | Final Stats
Records: Evangel (19-8, 12-6); Grand View (16-9, 11-7)
Site: Dave Sisam Arena

DES MOINES, Iowa – Grand View shot a blistering 51 percent from the floor and converted 27 free-throw attempts to end Evangel's four-game win streak with a 97-84 decision over the Valor Wednesday evening at Dave Sisam Arena.

Ryan Miller led four double-digit scorers for the Vikings, who buried 14-of-31 (0.452) three-point attempts and shot 0.794 from the foul line to register a season scoring high by an EU opponent.

Despite suffering just its fourth setback in 15 true road games this season, Evangel locked up at least a share of the top spot in the Heart of America Athletic Conference South Division standings by virtue of Central Methodist's victory over MidAmerica Nazarene Wednesday evening. As a result, the Valor clinched an opening-round home game in the Heart Conference Men's Basketball Tournament next Wednesday (Feb. 23). Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m., at the Ashcroft Center, with official pairings and opponents to be released after the conclusion of the regular season on Saturday (Feb. 19).

Grand View, which clinched the No. 2 spot in the North Division race with the victory, recovered from an early three-point deficit in a big way, outscoring the Valor by a 26-10 margin over a nine-minute stretch to build a 28-15 lead.

Evangel rallied behind the three-point shooting of Josh Pritchett and Cade Coffman, who combined to knock down a trio of long-range jumpers over the next 1:33 to trim the deficit to six points. The duo of Pritchett and Coffman hit on 5-of-6 total attempts from beyond the arc and tallied 19 points in the opening half.

Stephen Salvi added a trey of his own, pulling the Valor to within five points with 1:15 to play in the half. The Vikings rebounded once again, however, scoring the final five points of the half to take a 47-37 lead into intermission.

GVU was able to build its lead by cashing in at the foul line, hitting 14-of-18 free-throw attempts in the half.

The Vikings extended their lead in the early stages of the second period, thanks in large part to a pair of Jackson Golightly three-pointers. His second triple at the 16:14 mark handed the home club a 55-41 advantage—its largest lead of the game.

The Valor fought back to close the gap to eight points on six separate occasions, but each time the Vikings had an answer to stretch their lead back to double digits.

EU's final push came with just under six minutes to play, as Manrique Alvarado sank a three to slice the GVU lead to 80-72. But Ryan Miller connected on a pair of free throws, before Dallas Bryson and Golightly added baskets to make it a 13-point affair once again.

Miller scored seven additional points down the stretch to help GVU extend its lead to as many as 16 points. He also handed out a game-high seven assists to go along with his 26 points and finished the night 14-of-16 from the charity stripe.

Evangel recorded one of its best shooting performances of the season in the losing cause, finishing the game 31-of-61 (0.508) from the floor and 14-of-33 (0.424) from three-point range.

Pritchett paced the EU attack with his second straight 23-point performance, while Alvarado added 12 points and Salvi tallied 10.

LOOKING AHEAD
Evangel will conclude its regular season with a 4 p.m., Senior Day matchup with MidAmerica Nazarene Saturday (Feb. 19) at the Ashcroft Center.

Tickets for the quarterfinal round of the Heart Conference Men's Basketball Tournament are now available online at EvangelAthletics.com/Tickets.  

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, visit Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelValor, Twitter (@EvangelValor), or EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on their favorite EU teams by downloading the Evangel Athletics Gameday App through the App Store or Google Play.

—#OneValor—