Huntington, Ind. - Playing without their top-two scorers, the Marian men's basketball team put up a strong fight against Huntington University Saturday afternoon, but came up short falling by a final score of 94-89. Marian falls to 12-3 overall on the season and 2-3 in Crossroads League play.

The Knights entered Saturday without both of their leading scorers, as both Brody Whitaker and Gus Etchison were unavailable. Huntington scored the first four points of the game, but a three from Josh Bryan nearly four minutes into play got Marian going on the offensive end. Bryan and Maximus Gizzi carried the scoring load for Marian early as they found a rhythm and captured a lead in the game. Elhadj Diallo drained a three point shot with 11:07 to put Marian on top 18-15, and scores from Gizzi, Ben Henderson, and and Dylan Moles allowed Marian to maintain their hold on the lead as the clock rolled under eight minutes to play in the first half.

Moles' jumper with 7:55 put Marian on top 24-19, but a 5-0 run from the Foresters in 54 seconds quickly tied the game. Nolan Foster slowed the run with a paint jumper, but Huntington continued their offensive attack as their run extended to an 15-2 margin, driving the home team in the lead by eight at 34-26. Gizzi and Jackson Ames would end the run, but Marian was unable to get any closer than a six point difference before halftime. A Lane Sparks three for Huntington with 38 seconds remaining in the half added to the home lead, as the Knights trailed 43-32 at the break.

Both teams struggled out of the locker room as neither team made a field goal in the first 2:29 of the half, and Huntington was able to remain in the lead as they pushed their lead to as many as 17 points in the first five minutes of the period. Gizzi continued to man the offense for the short-handed Knights, and helped put the team in position to stay within five scores, as they slashed the lead to 11 points with 10:55 to play in the game.

A pair of shots from downtown by the freshman Diallo helped the charge to get the game within four scores once again, but it wasn't enough as the Foresters would once again reclaim a 15-point advantage, as they led 76-61 with 6:14 to play. After a near minute of scoreless basketball, the Knights made one final push to get back in the game, as Gizzi got to the line for two shots, and a three pointer from Bryan two possessions later cut the lead to 12. Marian continued to hang around, and with 3:16 remaining the race was one, as Bryan drained a three, sparking a quick 5-0 run following a pair of free throws from Gizzi.

Bryan and Ben Henderson would help cut the score to seven with 78 seconds remaining as Marian trailed 85-78, but needing to foul in order to get more offensive possessions, the Knights were unable to match the production of Huntington's foul shots in the final two minutes. The Foresters would sink nine free throws in the final 75 seconds, as the closest Marian would get would be five points following a Gavin Foe three in the closing seconds, as Huntington escaped with the 94-89 victory.

Despite trailing by double digits for over half of the game, Marian made a furious comeback effort in the second half, scoring 57 points, including a sprint of 26 in the final five minutes of the game. Without Whitaker and Etchison carrying their normal scoring loads, Gizzi and Bryan both turned in career offensive games, as the pair of seniors each scored career-highs. Gizzi finished the day with 26 points blowing his previous career-mark out by 10 points, while Bryan scored 25, topping his previous-best by five. Bryan made seven of Marian's 14 three's in the game, and Diallo led the bench scoring nine points.

Dylan Moles made his first collegiate start in Saturday's game, and Diallo scored a season-high. Gavin Foe and Jackson Ames each had a team-high eight rebounds.

Marian will look to get back in the win column on Wednesday night, as they host (RV) Bethel in the second part of a doubleheader with the women's team at 7:30 p.m.

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