Fort Wayne, Ind. - The Marian men's basketball team poured in a season-high 87 points on Tuesday night in Fort Wayne, as the Knights earned their first win of the season over a team featured in the NAIA Coaches' Poll, taking down Indiana Tech 87-78. The victory improves the Knights to 3-0 on the season under head coach Pat Knight.
Marian and Indiana Tech played back and forth basketball throughout the first half on Tuesday night, as an early layup by Gus Etchison was answered by the Warriors' Max Perez. Josiah Gustin and Dylan Moles scored on consecutive trips to push Marian in front 7-3, helping the team hold an edge as the game reached the under-15 minute media timeout. Indiana Tech would surge back in front with a 6-0 run, but the streak snapped with 13:11 to play in the first half as Elhadj Diallo gave Marian a 12-11 advantage. The two teams exchanged scoring after Marian captured the lead, with the game pushing to a 20-20 draw after 10 minutes of play.
With 9:15 to play in the opening half, Indiana Tech sparked a 5-0 run to take their largest lead of the half. Falling behind 25-20, Diallo and Etchison helped keep the Knights within two scores, and with 3:49 to play in the period a pair of Noah Lovan scores brought the visitors back to a four-point deficit. A pair of three-point makes from Dylan Moles in the final three minutes, along with a tip-in from Gustin gave the Knights a 39-37 lead, however the Warriors would score the final three points, capturing a 40-39 advantage at the break.
After the halftime break, Marian methodically pushed back in front, as Aidan Franks scored seven of the team's first nine points in the half to take a 47-44 lead. Indiana Tech would briefly grab a one-point advantage as Blake Davison buried a three-point shot, but the Knights were able to move right back in front with six points from Gustin over a three minute span. A put-back dunk from Gustin capitalized the surge, giving the team a 57-54 lead with 13:37 to go in the game. After the first media timeout of the half, the ball turned back to Etchison, as the team's leading scorer dropped five points in a 52 second gap to expand the lead to five.
Strong minutes from Jackson Ames off the bench helped Marian regain control on the glass while holding the lead, as the center's first points gave the Knights a 64-57 lead with 11:15 to play. The lead slowly swelled to 11 points as Ames scored a second chance basket, while two foul shots from Lovan gave Marian a 74-61 lead with 7:12 to play. Indiana Tech would manage to get the game back to a three-possession contest with 3:39 to go as they slowly chipped back, but Marian finished the game strong at the foul line, draining a handful of free throws while getting a pair of layups to ice the victory at an 87-78 margin.
Marian led by as many as 15 points over the final six minutes of the game as they iced their third victory of the season, and shot the ball at a 45.8 percent clip from the field. Gus Etchison had a strong night for Marian, leading the team with 21 points and three assists. Josiah Gustin scored a season-high 13 points, and Dylan Moles scored 12 in the game. Noah Lovan led the bench in scoring with 11 points, and Jackson Ames had eight points to go with six rebounds. Gavin Foe would lead the Knights in rebounding with eight boards, while Lovan, Franks, and Moles each had two steals.
Marian will go back on the road this weekend, heading to Michigan this weekend to take on two more foes from the WHAC in Rochester-Christian and Michigan-Dearborn in the Rochester-Christian JBA Classic. The tip-time for Friday against the Warriors is set for 5:00 p.m.
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