Manchester College posted a 79-60 seasoning-opening win over visiting Wheaton College on Tuesday, Nov. 16. Manchester, currently ranked 25th in the D3hoops.com Preseason Poll faced Wheaton, who ranks 28th in the same poll.

Wheaton opened the game with a 19-11 lead eight minutes into the contest, but Manchester used balanced scoring to assemble a 19-3 run to take a 30-22 advantage with 5:11 remaining in the half. Wheaton closed out the stanza with a 14-4 run to take a 36-34 lead at halftime.

MC took a 41-40 lead two minutes into the second half, and went on a 12-4 run to run up a 10-point, 53-43 lead with 12:55 to go, but Wheaton cut it to a 55-52 deficit three minutes later. Manchester took control of the final 10 minutes of play, going on a 24-8 run to close out the game and post the 79-60 win.

Manchester shot 55 percent from the floor, and held Wheaton to 36 percent overall in the game thanks in part to 15 blocked shots. They also limited Wheaton to just 25 percent field goal shooting, while connecting on 58 percent on their own, in the second half.

Senior Mitch Schaefer (pictured) led the team with 17 points, hitting 7-12 shots from the floor and 3-5 three-pointers. He added four rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steal. Jason SPindler was 7-11 from the floor with five blocked shots and seven rebounds as he added 14 points on the night. Tyler Henn had 13 points on 6-9 shooting from the field to go with his four rebounds, blocks and steals. Nathan Ferch and Tyler Delauder added 11 points each in the win.

The Spartans go to 1-0 on the year, while Wheaton falls to 0-1. MC travels to Kalamazoo on Tuesday, Nov. 23.