Chandler, Ariz. - The Marian men's basketball team continued their impressive 39-game non-conference winning streak Sunday afternoon in Arizona, as the Knights landed a wire-to-wire 91-81 upset win over No. 15 Rocky Mountain College. The win for Marian gives them a mark of 9-2 overall on the season.

Marian came out red-hot to start Sunday's game, opening the afternoon on a one-sided 17-2 run in the game's first five minutes. Gus Etchison, Brody Whitaker, and Josh Bryan were the catalysts in the sprint, with consecutive three-point makes ending the run. While the offense started strong, Marian's defense was even stronger as they limited the Battlin' Bears to a 1-for-12 start from the field. 

The Knights continued to knock down shots and add to their lead, growing to a 20-point advantage with 7:13 remaining in the game after Dylan Moles buried an open three. Rocky Mountain would chip away from Marian's 35-15 lead after Moles trifecta, but Marian kept a lead of five possessions as the first half closed. Josh Bryan got late in the half from three and drained three shots from downtown, as his nine points helped the Knights lead by as many as 25 before going to the halftime break leading 54-35. 

In the second half Marian started in control, as Etchison and Whitaker helped Marian reclaim their 20-point advantage in the first four minutes of play, but the Battlin' Bears turned the comeback hats on, whittling the lead away. Rocky Mountain used a 12-2 run midway through the second half to drop what was a 17-point 63-46 deficit to a seven-point contest. The Bears would continue to chip away at Marian's lead, knocking down a pair of three's to make it a two-point game with 11:28 remaining.

Gus Etchison had the answer for Marian and helped the Knights get back in a rhythm as he scored four unanswered points to push the lead to six. Rocky Mountain would climb back within two points as their offense started up again, but an answer from Nolan Foster held Marian in check with a four-point lead. Foster's bucket sparked a 9-0 run that lasted over two minutes of game time, vaulting the Knights back in front by double digits as they led 79-68 with 5:53 remaining. 

The run kept Marian in the lead for good, as they withstood one final surge from the Bears to hold a lead, and would lead by as many as 12 in the final seconds following a dunk from Foster as the Knights closed strong with a 91-81 victory.

Whitaker and Etchison continued their dominant stretch of offensive basketball, as both players scored 25 points in the win. Etchison led Marian with five assists, and Whitaker grabbed eight rebounds. Bryan finished the game with 18 points as he led the bench in scoring, and Foster picked up his first double-double of the season with a 10-point, 11-rebound performance. 

Marian will take a break for the Christmas holiday, and will return to action on December 30, as they close the 2023 calendar year at home against Rio Grande.

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