Box Score MARIETTA, Ohio – Befitting a battle for the top spot in the Ohio Athletic Conference, Wednesday's (Feb. 6) match-up between Marietta College and Capital University went into overtime before the Crusaders escaped with a 70-67 victory.
Capital improves to 16-6 overall and takes sole possession of first place in the OAC with a 13-2 league record. Marietta falls to 16-6 and 12-3 in the OAC.
The two heavyweights stood toe to toe and traded punches all night long. Neither team led by more than five points in a game that featured seven ties and 13 lead changes.
Capital's Tim Congrove hit a pair of free throws with 28 seconds left in regulation to give the Crusaders a 59-56 lead.
On the ensuing possession, junior
Tyler Hammond (Cleveland/St. Ignatius) drove to the basket and was fouled as his layup dropped in. He finished the old-fashioned three-point play sending the game into overtime ties 59-59.
The Pioneers scored first in overtime as the teams traded the leaded through the first four minutes of the extra period. A layup from Michael Sommer put the Crusaders on top, 69-67, with 19 seconds left.
Marietta called a timeout to set up a play. Hammond drove the baseline and kicked the ball out but his pass was off the mark giving the ball back to Capital. Forced to foul, the Pioneers sent AJ Dixon to the line with five seconds on the clock.
Dixon sunk the first free throw for a 70-67 lead. His second attempt bounced off the rim and
J.J. Martin (Huntington, W.Va./Huntington) grabbed the rebound. The Pioneers raced up the floor but Capital's Ben Jackson stole the ball as the buzzer sounded.
Hammond led the Pioneers with 18 points and three blocked shots. Martin recorded a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore
Garrett Stephenson (West Milton/Milton-Union) added 10 points.
Sommer paced the Crusaders with 18 points. Spencer Niekamp scored 15 points and pulled down eight rebounds before fouling out early in the overtime period. Congrove chipped in with 11 points, three blocks and five assists.
Marietta was 25-of-61 (41.0%) from the floor, 6-of-25 (24.0%) behind the arc and 11-of-15 (73.3%) at the lone. Capital shot 41.9% (26-of-62) from the floor, 27.3% (6-of-22) from three-point range and 80.0% (12-of-15) at the line.
The Pioneers edged Capital on the glass, 40-35. Marietta committed 13 turnovers, while Capital turned the ball over 10 times.
Marietta hosts Baldwin Wallace University Saturday (Feb. 9) at 3:00 p.m. in its final home game of the regular season. 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.
