MARIETTA, Ohio — After a deadlocked score in the first half, Capital University controlled the glass and paint all throughout the second half and went on to defeat Marietta College, 94-71, Saturday (Jan. 24) afternoon in Ohio Athletic Conference men's basketball action. The loss drops Marietta to 8-10 overall and 3-6 in the OAC. The Comets improve to 7-11 overall and 2-7 in the OAC.
 
The teams traded three-pointers to begin the game as Jake Singleton (Senecaville, Ohio/Meadowbrook) and Elijah Harden (Sharon, Pa./Kennedy Catholic) both hit from beyond the arc in the Pioneers' first two possessions.  After Trenton Collins (Newark, Ohio/Utica) scored a layup and Singleton again nailed a three-pointer, the Pioneers led 13-6 going into the first media timeout.
 
The Comets climbed back with a layup from Se'Ron Calloway-White and a trey from McKane Finkenbine to cut the lead to one, but Singleton again hit from three-point range to slow the rally.  Jai Guerra-Howard (Lorain, Ohio/Lorain) later knifed through the lane for a tough layup and scored the bonus free throw to put Marietta up by six points again.  Capital powered back with a tipin from Chris Mitchell and another three-pointer from Finkenbine to again cut the Pioneer lead to one.  
 
Kamran Ensley entered the game for the Comets after a time out and made an immediate impact, scoring twice to give the Comets their first lead of the game at that point.  Luke Powell (St. Marys, W.Va./St. Marys) returned the favor for the Pioneers as he came off the bench to power in a pair of layups to vault Marietta back in the lead.  
 
After both teams exchanged the lead several times, the Pioneers got a dunk from Mason Wisniewski (Farmington Hills, Mich./Orchard Lake St. Marys) and a layup from Guerra-Howard to put them up three with 1:43 remaining in the half, but that is all they would score for the rest of the half.  A Pioneer turnover in the finals seconds led to points for the Comets as Dallas Tucker converted a layup and both teams were tied at 40 going into halftime.
 
Although the Pioneers got three pointer from Singleton to begin the second half, the next several minutes were a disaster.  Capital went on a 13-2 run, getting seven points from Julian Mitchell, to jump out to a 10-point lead.  Another 13-1 run, led by six points by Finkenbine, pushed the lead to 20 with less than 13 minutes remaining.
 
The contest became out of reach as Calloway-White single-handedly scored 15 points for the Comets over the latter portion of the half, and Marietta had absolutely no answer.  Capital would go on to cruise to a 94-71 victory.
 
Capital held the advantage of points in the paint (52-28), rebounds (36-25), fast break points (21-9), and Marietta was held scoreless in second chance opportunities (11-0).
 
Singleton led four Pioneers in double figures with 18 points, all of his shot from three-point range. Wisniewski went 7-of-10 from the field, on the way to 17 points.  Harden and Collins both finished with 10 points apiece. Guerra-Howard finished with six points and led the Pioneers with five rebounds and five assists.
 
Calloway-White led all scorers with 31 points.  Finkenbine finished with 16 points and seven assists. Chris Mitchell had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Marietta travels to battle the University of Mount Union on Wednesday (Jan. 28) for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off.
 
Fans can follow the Pioneers all season long at pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on X and Instagram.