December 8, 2023 | by Taylor Pill

LEAD

ANKENY, Iowa -- The Sabercats couldn't get a three-pointer to fall in a disappointing loss to Calvary, as the Sabercats fell 68-86 to the Warriors to open the Faith Christmas Classic.

Brayden Cox led Maranatha with a career-high 21 points and seven rebounds, but that performance was one of the lone bright spots on an otherwise frustrating night in Ankeny.

OVERVIEW

• Result: Maranatha 68-86 Calvary 
• Venue: Nettleton Courts - Faith Baptist Bible College
• Location: Ankeny, Iowa
• Event: Faith Christmas Classic
• Attendance: 58
• Records: MBU (2-6), CU (2-3)

STORY

Noah Jensen was responsible for the Sabercats' first six points, as the forward grabbed a dozen points in the opening 11 minutes. Jensen's jumper at the 9:37 mark gave Maranatha an 11-point lead, and Will Schultz extended that to 13 a couple of possessions later. At that point, it looked to be full steam ahead for MBU, who had a 29-16 lead.

But Calvary had other plans.

Jaylon Armstrong's 11 points powered a massive Warrior run, as Calvary put up 20 unanswered points to deal Maranatha a sucker punch during their seven-minute scoreless draught.

Late points from Cox and Schultz tied the game going into halftime, but Calvary had all the momentum and then some.

Calvary stayed just in front of Maranatha in the opening exchanges of the second half, but the Sabercats began to fight the miscues while Calvary made seeingly everything they looked at. Maranatha's second half included a 2-9 three-point performance and 13 turnovers. Meanwhile, Calvary shot 60 percent from the field. Matthew Hammonds went 4-7 from downtown to fuel the charge for the Warriors, who steadily pulled away to seal of the 86-68 win.

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Maranatha Starters: 2-Cox, 12-Jensen, 21-Moultrie, 30-Shultz, 33-Mertes

STATS

• Box Score
• Cox: career-high 21 points and 7 rebounds
• Jensen: 18 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists
• Schultz: 12 points, 10 rebounds
• Schultz: 7th consecutive double-double
• MBU: shot 41.4 percent from the field
• CU: shot 57.4 percent from the field
• Last time: Maranatha defeated Calvary 71-58 in the FBBC Christmas Classic, last year on December 9th
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Calvary 6-2

OPPONENTS

• Calvary competes in the NCCAA Central Region
• Calvary also competes in the Midwest Christian Collegiate Conference
• Calvary finished the '22-'23 season with a 4-25 record

NEXT

The Sabercats stay in Ankeny for day two of the Christmas Classic where they face Faith, tomorrow at 2 P.M. Follow at mbusabercats.com/schedule.