GRINNELL, Iowa— The Knox College Prairie Fire men's basketball team lost a tough game to the Grinnell Pioneers by a score of 129-61. This score was a reflection of Grinnell's unique style of play, in which their offense attempts shots as quickly as possible and primarily shoots threes.  

The Pioneers' deep bench allowed them to ratchet up the tempo without tiring out their players, and this gave them a significant advantage. While Knox only attempted 17 shots in the first half, Grinnell attempted an astounding 50, including 34 from long-range. With such a barrage of offense, Knox hung tough at first but found themselves in a double-digit hole within the first five minutes. This hole continued to widen despite solid play from Jordan Rayner, who scored six of Knox's 27 first half points. As a result, Knox entered the break down 44 points.

The second half saw Knox react better to Grinnell's offensive attack, but unfortunately their fortunes did not change. Rayner and Elijah Crump proved to be a good first-year duo for the Prairie Fire, scoring 17 total points and bringing in four rebounds. Knox's defense also limited Grinnell to 58 points in the second half, a relatively low amount for the Pioneers. Knox's offense could not get much else going for themselves, though, and Grinnell won by a comfortable margin.

Knox looks to notch a victory against Iowa Wesleyan on December 10th at 1:00 p.m.