Scoring 138 in one game wasn’t just a personal best for Grinnell’s Jack Taylor- It was a NCAA record breaker. Overnight Taylor became a well-recognized athlete, and has drawn attention from all over the country.
Grinnell’s Associate Head Basketball Coach said getting the ball to Taylor was part of a plan to boost the confidence of the 2nd year guard. Apparently during the team’s last game, Taylor wasn’t shooting that well, and the coach wanted him at his best for the upcoming conference games. Well, the coach’s plan worked even better than he anticipated, because by half time, Taylor had already racked up 58 points- and he was just warming up.
“There was a point in the second half where I think I combined 7 or 8 three’s in a row and that’s when I kind of knew I might be approaching the record,” said Jack Taylor.
The news of Taylor’s 138 point record spread through his school and social media networks, like wild fire.
“Every possession he was draining a 3. Its giving me goose bumps just now just thinking about that moment and to be a part of it was just awesome,” said Grinnell’s Associate Head Basketball Coach Dave Arseneault.
Students that were in the stands that night said it’s a game they will never forget
“I was actually right there and I was like right behind him shooting all the 6 pointers consecutively so I was like wow that’s really cool,” said Joshua Vernazza, who is in his second year at Grinnell.
“At that point we started getting a count going in the stands, every time he would score we`d keep racking it up and he just kept going!” said Morgan Kinsinger, a third year student at Grinnell.
Not everyone is thrilled about the accomplishment. Taylor’s coach says some fans say what the team did isn’t “real basketball” but the coach stands behind the chance he and the team gave Taylor Tuesday night, and Taylor’s ability to run with it.
And he’s not the only one standing behind Taylor- he has some “famous followers” including LeBron James who said “I watched some of the greatest games ever played when guys scored big numbers. There`s two games that I would love to see: one was wilt, when he had 100, and this kid, I want to see him too. Sir Jack”
