The Hope College men's basketball team returns to the court tonight when it hosts Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic rival Adrian College.
Tipoff is 8 p.m. at DeVos Fieldhouse on "Orange Out" night that features a men's and women's varsity doubleheader. Hope fans are asked to wear orange in support of the Flying Dutchmen and Flying Dutch.
This is the 152nd game between Hope and Adrian in men's basketball. The rivalry dates back to 1938. Hope leads the all-time series by a 126-25 margin, including victories last season of 81-72 and 67-53.
Coach Matt Neil's Flying Dutchmen come into the game with a 10-6 overall record and a 4-1 mark in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association play. Hope is third in the league standings, one-half game behind Albion College and Calvin College because the Flying Dutchmen have played one fewer league game. Calvin plays at Albion tonight.
Adrian is 4-13 on the season and 0-6 in MIAA action.
Click here to see the MIAA standings and today's league schedule.
The matchup features three scorers ranked among the MIAA leaders.
Hope sophomore guard Ben Gardner of Carmel, Ind. (Carmel HS) is 10th in the MIAA at 13.4 points per game. Teammate Alex Eidson, a sophomore guard from Grand Haven (Grand Haven HS), is 12th at 12.9 points per game.
Adrian forward Rickey Jackson is tied for 13th at 12.5 points per game to lead the Bulldogs.
Gardner is ranked second in the MIAA at 3.4 assists per game and fourth at 1.38 steals.
Senior center Nate VanArendonk of Grand Haven (Grand Haven HS) is fifth in the MIAA at 6.6 per game.
Hope is scoring 73.1 points per game this season, good for fifth in the MIAA. Adrian is last in the league in scoring at 59.1 points per game.
The Flying Dutchmen also are fifth in scoring defense at 72.7 points per game allowed. Adrian is third at 65.9.
Click here for MIAA statistics and leaders.
Hope's student section — the Dew Crew — is sporting orange Hope headbands as part of tonight's "Orange Out." The headbands are sponsored by the Hope Fund. Learn more about how you can support the Hope Fund at www.hope.edu/hope-fund.
The Hope-Adrian men's junior varsity game tips off at 5:30 p.m. at the Dow Center.
