Cougars Rally Past Marian 63-60 for Second Straight MCC Win


	Cougar Basketball Game Recap Cougars Rally Past Marian 63-60 for Second Straight MCC Win written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director Game Boxscore MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (1-14-2012) - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University men's basketball team rallied from an eight-point second-half deficit as the Cougars closed the game on an 11-3 run to post a 63-60 Mid-Central College Conference victory over Marian (Ind.) University in the Physical Education Center on Saturday afternoon. MVNU (8-12, 2-6 MCC) was in the lead for most of the first half as the Cougars jumped out to an early 8-4 lead over the first four minutes and only trailed for 1:55 before halftime. MVNU's biggest lead came on a 3-pointer by junior guard Ben Severns *(left)* with 8:31 left before the break. With the Cougars still holding a 29-25 advantage with 2:32 still on the clock, Marian (12-7, 3-5 MCC) was able to pull within 31-30 on a layup by Eric Harris to close out the half. Sophomore post Caleb Williams led MVNU with 10 points as he was perfect from the field on four field goal attempts including a pair of 3-pointers. Severns added eight points off the bench with two treys, and senior guard Robbie Taylor tossed in seven points. The Cougars shot a blistering 61.1 percent from the field (11-for-18), 50 percent from 3-point range (4-for-8), and 71.4 percent from the free throw line (5-for-7). Alex Sylvester paced the Knights with seven first-half points, while Eric Harris tossed in five points and four other players contributed four points apiece to the balanced attack. Marian shot 43.3 percent from the field (13-for-30), 20 percent from 3-point range (2-for-10), and 50 percent from the free throw line (2-for-4). The Knights also committed just five first-half turnovers. Marian started the second half on a 15-6 run to take a 45-37 advantage at the 14:27 mark as Sylvester nailed a pair of treys, Aaron Evans scored four points, and Harris also drained a 3-pointer for the Knights. MVNU began to whittle away at the lead and pulled within 47-46 with 10:25 to play on a pair of free throws by sophomore wing Austin Semple. Taylor also added five points to fuel the comeback. However, Marian would not relinquish the lead as the Knights pushed the margin back to four points on three different occasions and as much as 57-52 with 4:04 to go. From that point on, though, the Cougars would close the game on an 11-3 lead as MVNU went 9-for-9 at the free throw line down the stretch and also got a basket from Semple mixed in. Meanwhile, the Cougars' defense held Marian to 0-for-7 shooting before Sylvester threw in a meaningless 3-pointer at the buzzer to make the final score 63-60 and end a 4:04 scoring drought for the Knights. Severns led MVNU with 17 points off the bench as he nailed a trio of 3-pointers. Taylor added 16 points and four assists, and Williams finished with 13 points and a team-high six rebounds. Senior forward Danil Zakhlebnyy also tossed in 10 points and grabbed five rebounds. The Cougars shot 48.8 percent from the field (20-for-41), 45.5 percent from 3-point range (5-for-11), and 85.7 percent from the free throw line (18-for-21). Sylvester and Evans each scored 16 points for Marian, while Jake Stafford grabbed a team-best seven rebounds to go with six points. The Knights shot 43.1 percent from the field (25-for-58), 31.6 percent from 3-point range (6-for-19), and 57.1 percent from the free throw line (4-for-7). "We are starting to show signs of mental toughness and believing in one another," said MVNU coach Matt Moore as the Cougars have rattled off two straight conference wins. "(Marian) is a very good team and presents difficult matchups. We stayed the course at the defensive end of the floor when they took a five-point lead late and chipped away at it. I thought all of our guys made critical plays down the stretch at getting the 'right' shots for the situations we were in rather than the 'first' shot. We will continue to improve on the areas we need to, but we'll also take a day or so to enjoy our victory." MVNU will look to match their season-high winning streak of three games to open the season when the Cougars travel to Goshen (Ind.) College on Tuesday for another MCC game that will tip off at 7 p.m. The Maple Leafs are currently 14-6 overall, 4-4 in conference play, and receiving votes in the latest NAIA Division II poll.

Site Map