Written By: Ross Mahaffey '07

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - The first round of the men's Charles B. Zimmerman Memorial Classic opened with an Indiana-University Southeast Grenadier victory over the Thiel College Tomcats, 83-59. Indiana-Southeast moved on to face the winner of the second matchup of the evening between York College and Wittenberg University.

IU-Southeast built an early lead and never looked back. Leading 31-23 at halftime, the Grenadiers came out strong in the second half, dominating the half by a final margin of 52-36. The Grenadier bench proved to be the catalyst in the victory, outscoring Thiel's bench 37-3. The Grenadiers dominated every offensive category to cruise to a 29-point victory.

IU-Southeast forward Nick Guilinger made his push for Tournament MVP after leading his team in nearly every category. Guilinger notched 22 points to go with his 12 rebounds and three assists. Guilinger was joined offensively by teammates Tyler Butcher, who added 15 points, and Antonio Gilkey, who chipped in 10 points as well.

Thiel was led by standout freshman guard Cory Chafee, who led all scorers with 25 points. Chafee was 9-for-12 from the field and pulled down seven rebounds, another team high. Chafee was also joined by teammates Brandon Mirizio, who added 13 points, while Joe Hermann chipped in 11 points to go with his six rebounds.

The win improves the Grenadiers' overall record to 13-3, while dropping Thiel's record to 3-6. Thiel will face the loser of the York/Wittenberg matchup in the consolation game, slated for a 2:45 p.m. tip-off. The championship game of the 2006 Charles B. Zimmerman Memorial Classic will begin at 7:45 p.m. Saturday, also in Wittenberg's HPER Center.