By Mark DeHaan

The Calvin men's basketball team hosted the Bulldogs of Adrian on Wednesday evening, looking to rebound from a loss to Hope last Saturday. The Knights came in at 9-4 and 1-1 in conference, while Adrian was 4-9 overall and 0-2 in the MIAA.

With a dominating performance at Van Noord Arena, Calvin returned to the winning track with a 78-54 victory over Adrian. With Albion defeating Hope on Wednesday, Calvin moves into a four-way tie for first place in the MIAA standings with Albion, Hope and Trine.

Senior Tyler Kruis (Grand Rapids/Calvin Christian HS) scored six early points for the Knights as they jumped out to a 9-5 lead. The Bulldogs cut the Calvin lead to just one at 13-12, but the Knights responded with a 10-0 run, ended by a three-pointer from junior Tyler Dykstra (Holland/Holland Christian HS), for a 23-12, double-digit advantage.

Adrian then cut its deficit to eight at 26-18 with 6:54 remaining, but a 14-4 run to end the half gave the Knights a 40-22 lead at the break.

Kruis and junior Jordan Brink (Dyer, IN/Illiana Christian HS) each had 10 points halftime as Calvin shot 59.3% in the first half. The Knights also outrebounded the Bulldogs 24-9 in the opening period.

Out of the break, Calvin picked up where it left off, opening up a 42-22 edge less than a minute in.

The Knights took their largest lead of the game with 6:11 remaining in regulation at 64-39. With the game in hand, Calvin cruised to a 78-54 victory as the Knights led from start-to-finish.

The Knights finished shooting 51.9% while dominating the Bulldogs on the boards, 47-22.

Kruis had 17 points and seven rebounds to lead the Knights offense while Brink added 13. Dykstra chipped in nine points and seven boards while sophomore BJ Van Loo (Hudsonville/Hudsonville HS) scored nine as well.

For Adrian, Ben Rodak and Rickey Jackson each had 13 points while Wesley Reed had 10.

"I'm very proud of (the team). I thought we were ready to play and we got the ball inside," said head coach Kevin Vande Streek. "You have to be ready (in the MIAA). I'm happy with our guys tonight, but tomorrow, we have to start thinking about Kalamazoo – that is no easy place to play. Records at this point don't really mean anything, you have to come ready to play and earn what you get."

Calvin improves to 10-4 overall and 2-1 in the MIAA while Adrian moves to 4-10 and 0-3 in league play. The Knights return to action on Saturday when they travel to Kalamazoo to face the Hornets. Saturday's contest is scheduled to tipoff at 3 p.m.