Knab's basket with 22 seconds left lifts Marietta over host Ohio Northern 69-67
Young Pioneers have now won three of their last four OAC games

Jan. 24, 2009
ADA, Ohio — Freshman Kevin Knab's (Lakewood) layup with 22 seconds left in regulation helped lift the Marietta College men's basketball team to a 69-67 upset win over host Ohio Northern University on Saturday (Jan. 24) afternoon. The win improved Marietta's record to 9-8 overall and 4-6 in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC). The Pioneers have now won three out of their last four Conference games. Ohio Northern, who entered the weekend in second place and won the initial meeting 74-49 on Dec. 6, 2008, fell to 12-5 overall and 7-3 in the OAC.

The Pioneers led for the first 26:13 of Saturday's ball game. Marietta built its lead to as many as 11 points in the first half before taking a 38-30 advantage into intermission. A jumper from Ohio Northern's Sam Bastian gave the Polar Bears their first lead, 50-49, with 13:13 to play in the game. The Polar Bears then stretched their lead to six points, 65-59, with 7:07 remaining. The Pioneers regained the upper hand, 66-65, after putting together a 7-0 run over the next three minutes. Jake Cannan's jumper pulled the Polar Bears even once again, 67-67, with 52 seconds left on the clock. Knab then made his jumper in the paint while drawing a foul to give the Pioneers the lead, 69-67, with just 22 seconds remaining. Despite Knab missing the free throw, the Pioneers defense held down the stretch to preserve the two-point road victory.

Freshman wing Trevor Halter led all scorers with 20 points while also dishing out a game-high four assists. Senior guard Isaiah Creasap (Wooster/Northwestern) followed with 15 points. Freshman Joe Puch (Brunswick) scored 11 off the bench while Knab finished with 10. Freshman center Connor Kilpatrick (Bowling Green) collected a career-high 13 rebounds in the victory.

Ezra Bradshaw paced Ohio Northern with 14 points and four assists. Bastian added 13 points, while Kurtis Brown scored 12 points. Scott Schnelle came off the bench to score 11 in the loss.

Marietta finished the game by hitting 27-of-54 (.500) from the field, 7-of-16 (.438) from three-point range and 8-of-16 (.500) from the free throw line. Ohio Northern shot 27-of-58 (.466) from the field, 5-of-14 (.357) from behind the arc and 8-of-13 (.615) from the free throw line. The Pioneers held the edge on the boards, 34-31, and committed 10 turnovers to Ohio Northern's 13.

The Pioneers return home to play host to Otterbein College on Wednesday (Jan. 28) night at Ban Johnson Arena. Tip-off will be at 7:30 pm. The Cardinals overcame an eight point halftime deficit to win the year's first meeting, 76-68, on Dec. 17, 2008.

Freshman Kevin Knab scored the winning bucket with 22 seconds left in the game to give Marietta a 69-67 win at Ohio Northern.

Box Score