Griffins succumb to Bluejays in home opener

St. Louis, Mo. - Fontbonne University men's basketball fell to Elmhurst College in their home opener tonight 82-53, slipping to 0-3 on the season. Elmhurst continues to be undefeated with a 4-0 record.

Fontbonne trailed 44-26 at halftime while Elmhurst added to their lead in the second half. The Bluejays scored 38 second-half points to Fontbonne's 27 points.

Down by seven points, Fontbonne's 8-2 run put them just one point behind Elmhurst (20-19) with 8:42 left to play in the first half. Five Griffin turnovers and five Griffin fouls allowed Elmhurst to end the half scoring 24 more points to Fontbonne's seven. During the second half, Elmhurst continued to pound the boards, scoring 11 second-chance points to Fontbonne's two.

For Fontbonne, senior Evan Johnson roped in 11 points, scoring eight of those in the second half. Freshman Jack Lake secured 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Junior Darius Rucker scored three baskets on four attempts, totaling nine points for the Griffins.

Elmhurst's Jalen Loving scored the game-high 14 points with Will Nixon adding 11 more. Nixon was 5-6 from the field.

Fontbonne takes on Wydown neighbor Washington University next Saturday, November 29th. The two teams will meet in Santa Cruz Calif. for a 5:00pm PST tipoff.