The Hope College men's basketball team could not solve a tough Saint John's University (Minnesota) defense and lost its Great Lakes Invitational opener, 64-48, on Friday in Grand Rapids.

The No. 21 Flying Dutchmen fell to 2-2 on the season after dropping the matchup of preseason nationally-ranked teams. No. 12 Saint John's improved to 4-0 on the season.

Hope wraps up the tournament against Marietta College (Ohio) on Saturday, Nov. 23, at 1 p.m. 

Marietta (3-1) also looks to rebound after falling to the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse, 75-66, in Saturday's first game.

On Friday, the Flying Dutchmen fell behind, 17-4, during the opening nine minutes but cut their deficit to 22-20 at halftime. 

Two free throws from sophomore Parker Harvey (Shelby, Michigan / Hart HS) and a layup from junior Sam Carlson (Superior, Colorado / Monarch) over the final 1 ½ minutes made it a one-possession game.

Saint John's surged back early in the second half behind an 11-0 run that propelled the Johnnies to a 37-24 lead with 13 minutes remaining.

Eleven different Saint John's players scored. Ryan Thissen topped the balanced attack with 11 points.

Senior Gabe Quillan (Ada, Michigan / Grand Rapids Catholic Central) topped Hope with 13 points on 50% from the field (5-10).

The Flying Dutchmen shot 28.3% for the game (15-53) and 16.7% from 3-point range (3-18).

Hope committed only 12 turnovers, but Saint John's turned it into an 18-6 edge in points off turnovers.