Grant Neil

Ben Gardner's game-high 18 points and Grant Neil's career-high 17 points boosted the Hope men's basketball team to an 80-72 win vs. Olivet on Saturday in front of a DeVos Fieldhouse crowd of 2,897.

The Flying Dutchmen remained tied atop the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) standings. Hope is now 9-6 overall and 3-1 in league play.

Sophomore guard Alex Eidson of Grand Haven (Grand Haven HS) recorded his first-double-double of the season with 14 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for the Flying Dutchmen.

Eidson went 10-of-12 from the line to lead Hope's best effort at the charity stripe this season. Hope recorded season highs with 30 free throws made and 37 attempts. The Flying Dutchmen hit at an 81.1 percent clip, their second-highest percentage of the season.

"Our guys were very, very focused. I was proud of them," Hope coach Matt Neil said. "They were determined we were going to get the ball inside today. To shoot 37 means we were attacking the basket, and we made a fair share of them."

Gardner, a sophomore from Carmel, Ind. (Carmel HS), shot 8-of-12 from the field. He also grabbed six rebounds.

Everyone in Hope's starting lineup had at least six rebounds. Neil grabbed a season-high seven, including three of the offensive end, to help easily surpass his career- and season-high of eight points.

Senior center Nate VanArendonk of Grand Haven (Grand Haven HS) added eight points and six rebounds. Freshman forward Cody Stuive of Hudsonville (Hudsonville HS) chipped in five points and six rebounds in his first career start.

Sophomore forward Brock Benson of Willowbrook, Ill. (Hinsdale South HS) contributed 10 points and five rebounds off the bench.

The Flying Dutchmen reached the 80-point mark for the fifth time this season despite shooting 37.5 percent from the field — its second-lowest effort of the season. Hope also made only two of the 16 3-pointers it attempted. 

Hope dropped Olivet to 3-11 overall and 1-2 in MIAA play.