GRINNELL, Iowa – Grinnell College and Illinois College have enjoyed spirited men's basketball battles in recent years, and Saturday afternoon was no exception.
 
Before a loud crowd in a nearly-packed Darby Gymnasium, the Pioneers tripped up the defending Midwest Conference champs 123-110.
 
The victory kept Grinnell just a game behind league leader Monmouth with an 8-3 conference mark. The Pioneers are 15-5 overall. Illinois College fell to 7-4 in the MWC and 14-6 in all games.
 
Kai Te Huki '27 drained four 3-pointers while leading Grinnell with 25 points. Also in double digits were Gabe Garcia '27 with 19, Harris Dar '28 and Jordan Lee '27 with 14 apiece and Nick Lundy '27 with 10. Tolu Johnson '25 grabbed six boards and Lee dished out four assists while tallying three steals.
 
Grinnell scored 21 of the game's first 31 points, but the Blueboys rallied and made it a four-point game by halftime at 53-49. Clinging to a one-point lead four minutes into the second stanza, Grinnell took control with a 12-2 run. Nick Courtney '26 began things with a layup, Johnson added another layup and Garcia cashed in on a trey for a 71-63 lead.
 
After Illinois College scored, Garcia followed with a jumper and Sean Walser '26 a 3-pointer to make it 76-65 with 13:03 remaining. The Pioneers were never seriously threatened again as they won their second game in a row.
 
During the game, Jackson Leone '25 moved to 14^th on Grinnell's career steals chart with 132. As a team, the Pioneers have 359 steals this season which is 15^th all-time.
 
Grinnell entertains Cornell College Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.