In the first quarter, Bristol (11-2, 9-1 NAC) got itself going as it started the game up 9-2 with about two minutes to go in the quarter. Bristol led 13-3 at the buzzer.

Grand Valley (7-6, 6-4) settled in much better defensively in the second quarter, but still couldn’t get going offensively.

“We just didn’t put the ball in the hoop enough. That has been our issue the last couple of weeks,” Grand Valley coach Justin Turk said. “I thought that Mike (McGovern) handled the ball well. We know what they want to do.

“For the most part, we handled them pretty well. We talked in the locker room that at some point they were going to go on a run.”

Tribune Chronicle / Marc Weems Damion Durst of Bristol leads Grand Valley defenders Dante Accettola (32) and Gordon Seger as he gets to the basket.

Bristol led 29-17 at halftime as Jude Cunningham had 12 points for the Mustangs and Tommy Donadio had nine points for the Panthers.

“We are a team that needs to create our offense from our defense. I thought that the way the game was played, when we made good plays defensively, we kicked ourselves in the foot,” Bristol coach Craig Giesy said. “They are long and lanky. We didn’t shoot very well and that didn’t help. We were looking for a couple things and I thought we made some mental errors.”

In the third quarter, Bristol took control of the game. The Panthers got up 42-25 near the end of the quarter, causing Grand Valley to take a timeout. The Mustangs continued to struggle offensively. Bristol led 44-27 after three quarters.

“We played awful and still won by 20. Our defense is important especially when we weren’t hitting any shots,” Donadio said. “That’s how important defense is to us. We still have to step up with senior leadership. We haven’t really done that yet. Whether it is vocal or by example.”

Donadio finished with a team-high 12 points with six rebounds and four assists.

Tribune Chronicle / Marc Weems Jude Cunningham (21) of Grand Valley gets off a shot as Bristol's Bobby Evan defends.

Nothing changed either way in the fourth quarter as Bristol increased its lead and eventually got the win.

“Our effort was good. We played with a lot of bounce out there,” Turk said. “Our bounce gave them some issues. Our goal every night is to hold teams to like 48, but the problem is getting over 48 the last few games.”

An unsung hero for the Panthers was Danny Lamosek. He grabbed 15 rebounds including seven offensive rebounds.

“We gave a very good effort on the boards tonight. Danny Lamosek is a monster on the boards. He has been our main rebounder. Tonight, he didn’t disappoint,” Giesy said.