Record-setting shooting performance sends Grinnell past Macalester

GRINNELL, Iowa - One day after Grinnell College's women's basketball team had a school-record performance, the men's team followed suit.

 

Jackson Leone '25 was a perfect 6-of-6 from 3-point land, marking the first time in history a GC player has made all of his trey attempts - with a minimum of five made - in the Pioneers' 133-92 victory over Macalester College Saturday at Darby Gymnasium.

 

The previous school mark, achieved seven times and most recently by Jordan Lee '27 last season, was 85.7 percent.

 

Leone's performance was far from the only highlight-reel performance by Grinnell (4-2), which was playing Macalester for the first time in program history. Kai Te Huki '27 scored 28 points and Sean Murphy '26 added a career-high 25 while also grabbing five rebounds. That rebound mark was also a career-high for Murphy.

 

Other Pioneers scoring in double figures were Leone with 20, Lee with 13 and Nick Lundy '27 with 10. Lundy and Tolu Johnson '25 each had seven boards, while Strahinja Nikolic '27 added five. Leone and Nick Courtney '26 came up with six and five steals each, both career-highs. Courtney also blocked a career-high two shots.

 

Macalester (1-6) grabbed a 6-0 lead right off the bat before the Pioneers responded with an 11-point run that included a jumper and 3-pointer by Te Huki and consecutive treys by Murphy.

 

It was later a four-point lead for the Pioneers before they went on an eight-point run that included a layup by Sean Walser '26 and treys by both Leone and Lee for a 36-24 lead. The Pioneers were ahead 61-51 at halftime and upped their lead throughout the second stanza. A highlight of the second half came between the 3:31 and 1:45 marks when Leone drained four treys in a row while an enthusiastic crowd cheered him on.

 

Grinnell has a week off before entertaining Greenville College next Saturday in a battle of the top two scoring teams in the nation. Tip-off at Darby Gymnasium is noon.