WOOSTER, Ohio – Marietta College's last second three-point shot glanced off the rim as the No. 13-ranked College of Wooster escaped with a 59-57 win Saturday (Dec. 29) evening in the final game of the 50th annual E.M. Mose Hole/Wooster Kiwanis Classic.
The Pioneers trailed by 11 points at the half and gradually cut away at Wooster's lead. Marietta missed a game-tying jumper and was forced to foul with 6.5 seconds left on the clock.
The Fighting Scots missed the front end of the one-and-one and senior #
Jacob Owens (Mansfield/Mansfield)# collected the rebound and raced up the left side of the court. Owens got off a three-point shot that was off the mark as time expired.
After committing less than 10 turnovers in each of the last five games, the Pioneers turned the ball over 10 times in the first half resulting in 11 Wooster points. The Fighting Scots led 34-23 at the break.
Wooster extended its lead to 16 points, 39-23, early in the second half. The Scots maintained a double-digit advantage throughout most of the period. Following a jumper from Doug Thorpe with 3:21 left in the game, Wooster lead 57-47.
Marietta responded with a 10-2 run cutting the lead to two, 59-57, with 39 seconds left.
Senior #
J.J. Martin (Huntington, W.Va./Huntington)# led the Pioneers with 12 points. He had six rebounds, blocked two shots and was named the tournament's defensive MVP. Owens and junior #
Matt Napier (Powell/Olentangy Liberty)# each added 10 points. Napier grabbed a team-high seven boards.
Senior #
Scott Kimmey (Olmsted Falls/Olmsted Falls)# was named to the all-tournament team. Kimmey led Marietta with 17 points in Friday's game against Geneva.
Evan Pannell scored 12 points to lead Wooster. All-Tournament selection Evan Pannell chipped in with 10 points. Jake Mays was named the MVP after scoring nine points and pulling down a game-high 11 rebounds.
Marietta shot 35.5% (22-of-62) from the floor, 17.4% (4-of-23) from three-point range and 56.3% (9-of-16) from the line. Wooster hit 22-of-56 (39.3%) from the floor, 6-of-20 (30.0%) from behind the arc and 9-of-16 (56.3%) from the line.
The Scots grabbed 43 rebounds to the Pioneers' 40. Marietta did not commit a turnover in the second half and finished the game with 10. Wooster turned the ball over 12 times.
The Pioneers are back in action on Wednesday (Jan. 2) when Ohio Northern University comes to town for a 7:30 p.m. Ohio Athletic Conference battle. Fans can catch the action live at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter.
