Kjos passes 1000 point mark; #14 Jimmies rally past Briar Cliff

Marc Kjos passed the 1000 career point mark and the 14th-ranked Jimmie men's basketball team, faced with an 11-point first half deficit, completed the second half comeback in an 83-77 win over Briar Cliff (Iowa) University Wednesday evening at Harold Newman Arena.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Briar Cliff jumped out to an 18-8 lead with 12:35 left in the first half.
• A three-pointer by Will Cordes capped a 12-5 run that got the Jimmies within three points (23-20) at the 8:28 mark.
• The Chargers reeled off 10 of the next 12 points, beginning and ending with three-pointers by Tyrus Eischeid to build its biggest lead of the game, 33-22 at the 6:27 mark.
• Cordes knocked down back-to-back threes as UJ went on a 10-0 run to cut the lead to one.
• Jaden Kleinhesselink scored with four seconds left to give BCU a 37-35 lead at the break.
• Reid Gastner's bucket capped an 8-0 run to start the second half as the Jimmies pulled in front 43-37 with 18:19 to play.
• Kjos made a three to give Jamestown a 57-52 lead, but the Chargers hung tough, retaking a two-point lead at the 7:12 mark.
• After a Mason Walters basket tied the game at 65-65, Kjos wowed the crowd with a highlight-reel quality layup that gave UJ the lead for good.
• Fourteen of the Jimmies' 16 final points came from the free throw line. UJ was a perfect 23-of-23 at the charity stripe in the second half.
• Kleinhesselink banked in long threes on consecutive Charger possessions to keep the closing seconds interesting.

JAMESTOWN GAME NOTES

• Kjos became the 35th player in program history to score 1000 career points and is the first Jimmie ever with 1000 points and 400 assists. With 419 assists (and counting), Kjos trails only Shane Piatz (559) on UJ's all-time assists list. He had 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting (4-of-5 threes) Wednesday.
• Jamestown shot 45.5 percent (25-of-55) from the field and 45.5 percent (10-of-22) from three-point range.
• UJ outrebounded BCU 35-23, including 10-3 on the offensive glass.
• Cordes had 28 points and was 5-of-8 on three-point attempts.
• Walters finished with 20 points and seven rebounds.
• Reid Gastner was also in double figures with 10 points and had a team-high nine rebounds.

BRIAR CLIFF GAME NOTES

• Briar Cliff shot 54.2 percent (32-of-59) from the field, including 45.8 percent (11-of-24) from three-point range.
• Kleinhesselink led all players with 30 points and pulled down eight rebounds.
• Conner Groves was also in double figures with 15 points.
• The Chargers had a 17-6 advantage in points off the bench.

UP NEXT

• Jamestown (14-3, 6-3 GPAC) hosts Concordia (Neb.) on Saturday, January 14
• Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Harold Newman Arena.