Playing without three of its senior starters in two of its three games in the Cono Invitational Tournament in December, Maranatha's boys basketball team defeated a scrappy Independence Christian School team and fell to tournament finalist, the FFAI Defenders from Cedar Rapids.
In its first game the boys were not ready for the intense defensive pressure by the FFAI defenders and fell behind immediately, trailing 33-12 at halftime. In the third period Maranatha played the Defenders almost even with the Defenders outscoring the Mustangs 7-6. In the final period Maranatha came to life and played one of the best quarters of their tournament, outscoring the Defenders 25-14,leaving the final score at 54-42. Leading scorers for the Mustangs were Taylor Adolphson with 16 points, Austin Gregerson with 13, and Ian Nichols with 6.
In its second game of the tournament, Maranatha faced a tough team from Independence Christian Academy. Playing without seniors Taylor Adolphson, Austin Gregerson, and Zach Miller who were at home taking ACT tests, the Mustangs came out strong. Maranatha led from the start and outscored the Independence team in every period but the final one when most starters were on the bench. Maranatha led at halftime by a score of 35-18 and ended the game up 70-51. Maranatha's balanced scoring came from Matt Bruce with 26 points, David Parkinson with 21, and Ian Nichols with 19. Also scoring were JD Abell, Emerson Hoffman, and Evan Johnson with 2 each and Ben Forney with 1 point. Matt Bruce received votes for the all tournament team for Maranatha.
Maranatha's Ian Nichols flies toward the basket surrounded by defenders from Independence Christian Academy. Nichols scored 19 points in the game.
Matt Bruce launches a three-point shot against Independence. Bruce led all scorers with 26 points.