Box Score MARIETTA, Ohio – Senior #J.J. Martin# poured in a career-high 33 points leading Marietta College to a 97-90 Ohio Athletic Conference victory Wednesday (Jan. 9) night. Martin is the Pioneers' leading scorer averaging 16.5 points per game this season.
Mount Union (5-9 overall, 3-4 OAC) was probably scratching its collective heads at halftime trying to figure out how they could be trailing the Pioneers. The Purple Raiders hit eight three-pointers and shot 61.5% (16-of-26) from the floor in the opening period, but trailed Marietta 44-43.
A trey from Kyle Scelza with 7:48 left in the first half gave Mount Union its biggest lead of the game, 31-20. Marietta went on a 15-4 run to take the lead 38-37 at the 3:32 mark. Martin scored seven of the Pioneers' 15 points during the run.
The second half featured eight ties and six lead changes. Neither team led by more than four points through the first 12 minutes of the period. A 10-2 Pioneer run late in the game gave Marietta a 10-point lead, 88-78, with 2:08 left on the clock.
Marietta hit nine of 10 free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
Martin was 11-of-16 from the floor and hit four three-pointers. Senior
Scott Kimmey (Olmsted Falls/Olmsted Falls) and sophomore
Brennan McKean (Jeromesville/Northwestern) each scored 13 points, while senior
Tyler Worstell (Prospect/Franklin Heights) had 11 points. McKean pulled down a team-high six rebounds.
Jarrett Ruffin led Mount Union with 20 points. Cody Dillon and Steve Griffin each scored 17 points, while Nate Jacubec added 16 points and six rebounds.
For the game Marietta shot 50.0% (28-of-56) from the floor, 48.0% (12-of-25) behind the arc and 87.9% (29-of-33) at the line. Mount Union was 33-of-56 (58.9%) from the floor, 15-of-28 (53.6%) from three-point range and 9-of-19 (47.4%) from the charity stripe.
The Purple Raiders held a slim edge in rebounds, 30-29. Mount Union turned the ball over 19 times, while Marietta committed 13 turnovers.
Marietta hosts John Carroll University on Saturday (Jan. 12) for a 3:00 p.m. contest. 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.
