Crusader men split at Bull City Classic
Nov. 29—For the second year in a row, Grace Christian's men's basketball team competed in the annual Bull City Classic and came away with a split of their two games.
The Crusaders, as they did a year ago, opened the event with a loss to Maryland powerhouse Rock Creek Christian. However, in Saturday's consolation round, Grace beat HA Prep Academy and will head into today's conference opener with Friendship Christian with an overall record of 4-3.
The Bull City Classic is a long-running annual event held over the Thanksgiving weekend and hosted by Mount Zion Christian Academy, the alma mater of former NBA superstars Tracy McGrady and Amare Stoudemire. While Mount Zion is not the national power it was in those days, it still is a destination for players aspiring to college basketball and hosts the Classic as an annual showcase.
On Friday night, the Crusaders were once again taking on Rock Creek, who beat them by 20 points in last year's Bull City opener. This time, Grace kept it close throughout, but the Eagles made the plays down the stretch and won the game 67-60.
The Crusaders' Derius Hodges had a double-double, with 12 points on 4-5 shooting and 10 rebounds. Kaleb Smith came close, posting 17 points with nine assists to go with five rebounds. Ma'kyi Butler led Grace in scoring with 25 points. TJ McGraw had seven rebounds and Landon Wester six.
Grace returned to Durham for Saturday's consolation game and faced HA Prep, which has been playing the likes of teams like Winston-Salem Christian's national travel team and powerhouse Oak Hill in the early part of the 2022-23 campaign. The Crusaders pulled away in the fourth quarter to win 66-54.
Butler and Hodges both had outstanding performances again in this one, with the former pumping in 25 points again and Hodges adding 18. Sam Streeter had eight points and Wester seven.
Grace begins its Raleigh Area Athletic Conference era this evening at Torgerson Gym, as the Crusaders' men's and women's teams will both be hosting Friendship Christian in their conference openers. The Lady Crusaders will be playing for the first time in 10 days, and also making their 2022-23 home debut.
