Men’s Basketball falls at #13 Marietta
By Wes Mayberry
MARIETTA — The Ohio Northern men's basketball team fell 94-59 at No. 13 Marietta on Saturday evening at Ban Johnson Arena.
Saturday's game was the Ohio Athletic Conference opener for both teams as the Pioneers improved to 4-2 overall and 1-0 in the OAC while the Polar Bears dropped to 4-2, 0-1.
Senior Brandon Waugh (Columbus/Northland) led the way for the Polar Bears with a game-high 20 points while also chipping in four rebounds and three assists.
Waugh shot 6-of-10 (60%) from the field, including 4-of-7 (57.1%) from 3-point range, and was 4-of-5 (80%) from the foul line.
Junior Landen Long (Mason) added nine points and a team-high five rebounds for ONU while freshman Garrett Chapin (Norwalk) finished with eight points.
Freshman Ethan Bell (Marion/River Valley) led ONU with four assists.
Marietta finished with a trio of double-figure scorers led by 17 points from senior Jason Ellis.
Senior Mason Lydic added 15 points to go with 11 from sophomore Jac Alexander.
Junior Brennen Crawford tallied a game-high eight rebounds.
The Pioneers steadily built up their lead throughout the first half during which they made six 3-pointers.
A triple from senior Lukas Isaly put Marietta up by 17, 41-24, with 5:08 left in the opening half, and a 3-pointer from sophomore Cooper Parrott made it an 18-point game at 46-28 with 3:31 remaining.
The Pioneers led by as many as 22 points in the first half and took a 52-32 edge into halftime en route to the victory.
Saturday marked the third time this season Marietta has scored more than 90 points.
Ohio Northern made 22-of-52 field goals for 42.3% and was 6-of-19 from 3-point range for 31.6%, while the Pioneers made 39-of-74 field goals for 52.7% and were 11-of-24 from beyond the arc for 45.8%.
The Polar Bears return to action on Wednesday for their home opener at 7 p.m. against OAC foe Wilmington.