The Grand Views

Issue date: 2/19/10 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Taylor Hinkle Corey Viet became the 15th player in Viking history to score 1,000 points in his career. He reached this milestone in the Vikings' game against Ashford on Feb. 6. Viet played junior college basketball at Kirkwood before becoming a Viking. He currently is second in the MCC in scoring, averaging 19.1 points per game.

Wednesday night the Vikings lost to Mt. Mercy 77-72, but with a loss by Viterbo, the Vikings still won the MCC regular season title.

Even if Ashford wins their game on Saturday, the Vikings hold the tiebreaker over Ashford and Viterbo.

Corey Viet, senior forward, scored 26 points and Schulz added 15 points in the lose at Mt. Mercy.

Defense was the key for the Vikings this past week as they picked up two must-win games to stay at the top of the MCC and moved up to number 14 in the NAIA.

On Senior Day last Saturday, the Vikings were able to overcome another slow start and defeat Clarke College 66-46. Back-to-back three pointers by Schulz sparked the Vikings' strong second half.

The defense held Clarke to only 18 points in the first half and 31.5 percent from the field.

Schulz was four of six from the three-point line to lead the Vikings with 13 points. Viet added 10 points. Burns handed out 12 assists. In the last four games, he's averaged 10 assists per game.

This year's conference race has been tough. For most of the season, the top five teams have been separated by only one or two games.

"Our conference has proven to be dangerous this year," Denis Schaefer, men's head basketball coach, said. "It's going to come down to the last weekend to see who wins it."

Since the Vikings won the regular season title, they have home court advantage throughout the tournament.

"Winning the conference title outright is a huge advantage for us because we get to play all three games at home," Schaefer said.

With home court advantage, the team doesn't have to worry about traveling and can get in an afternoon shoot around. Schaefer said there's just a comfort level when you play at home.

The Vikings took on Iowa Wesleyan last Wednesday Feb. 10, and used a 15-4 run in the second half to pull away for the 74-57 win.

Grant Burns, senior point guard, found Kevin Smith, sophomore center, for back-to-back dunks to regain the momentum. Royce Philips, sophomore forward, added a spark for the Vikings off of the bench. His basket with 2:43 left helped seal the Vikings' victory.

"Our defense was the cornerstone in our win," Schaefer.

They held Iowa Wesleyan to 41 percent and 27 percent from behind the arch.

Viet led the Vikings with 21 points, including 14 in the second half. He added 10 rebounds to record his third double-double of the season. Burns's 14 assists set a new Grand View single-game record.

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