GALESBURG, Illinois - On Tuesday night, the Knox Prairie Fire men's Basketball team got into a very competitive game against Maranatha Baptist. It was a battle from the opening tip for the Prairie Fire.
 
Sophomore Ikenna Ozor opened up the scoring with a mid-range jumper at the 18:23 mark of the 1st half. Maranatha Baptist would answer with a 3-pointer proving to be a microcosm for the game; both teams taking turns scoring. First-year Jordan Rayner would come off the bench and have an immediate impact. Rayner had seven points in the first half to go along with two rebounds and an assist. It was a team effort all around as five players also chipped in with four points for the Prairie Fire. At the end of the first half Knox held a 28-27 lead.
 
The second half was a turbulent one to say the least. Both teams continued the trend of going basket for basket. First-year Malcolm Bray had a jumper to put Knox ahead by one at the 17:00 mark. Rayner knocked down his second 3-pointer of the game to push the lead to two points.
 
A big brawl between both teams at the 13:36 mark resulted in several ejections on both sides. First-year point guard Jaelon Brooks came in relief and stepped up big. Brooks had 12 points in just the second half alone. Ozor iced the game with clutch free throws down the stretch going 6-for-6 from the line. The final score was a 71-68 win for the Prairie Fire to put their record at 1-1 in the early part of the season.
 
Ozor, Brooks, and Rayner each finished with 12 points. Ozor completed the double-double by grabbing 14 rebounds. Blake Godbold also pulled down 14 rebounds.
 
"That was a huge team win for us, we became tighter as a team tonight," said head coach Kevin Walden. "We have faced a lot of adversity lately and we fought through it. I am very proud of the team and how they excelled tonight."
 
The men's basketball team travels to Eureka on November 15 for their first road action.