Bloomington, Ind. - A new era of Marian men's basketball under head coach Pat Knight began Friday night in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, as the Knights played their season-opening exhibition game against the Indiana Hoosiers. The Knights fell 106-64 in their preseason tune-up against the Hoosiers.
Indiana delivered the first five points of the season Friday night, before an Aidan Franks pull-up jumper got the Knights in the score column. The 17th-ranked Hooisers flexed their guns early in the game extending their scoring run to 11-2 through three minutes, forcing an early Marian timeout. Dylan Moles drained a three before the under-16 minute media timeout, marking a 13-5 score, but that would the final moment Marian held within ten points as the Hoosiers embarked on an 8-0 after the timeout.
The Hoosiers led 27-8 as the game moved under the under-12 media timeout, and would lead by 21 points before Gus Etichson scored eight unanswered points to get Marian within 13. Etchison's run brought the score to 29-16, but was not enough to slow the Hoosiers their lead steadied at 18 points. A layup from Oumar Ballo with 3:47 to play in the first half saw Marian fall behind 42-22, and over the final four minutes the Knights were out-scored 8-3, entering the break trailing 50-25.
Marian held Indiana to a 1-for-11 shooting performance from three in the first half, but the Hoosiers were strong from the floor overall making 23-of-35 shots. Marian shot 28 percent from the floor in the first half, going 4-for-18 from beyond the arc.
In the second half the Hoosiers opened on a 13-5 run, jumping out to a 30-point edge. Elhadj Diallo and Dylan Moles carried the scoring for Marian through the first four minutes of the period, while Moles and Etchison took control of the Knights' scoring over the next four minutes to keep a static distance on the scoreboard. Freshman Noah Lovan showcased his scoring capabilities with six second half points over the final 10 minutes of the game, while fellow rookie Josiah Gustin scored all nine of his points in the second half.
Marian matched the Hooisers point-for-point over the final 10 minutes of the game, equalling their total score by finishing even 25-25. Gustin and Lovan helped out-score Indiana 6-2 in the final minute of the game, as the contest closed with a final score of 106-64.
Gus Etchison led the team in scoring with a 19-point night, tying Indiana's Bryson Tucker for a game-high total. Dylan Moles finished the night with 12 points, and Gavin Foe had seven points to go with six rebounds. Gustin finished with nine points, and Lovan scored eight points in his collegiate debut. Fellow newcomers Jaedin Reyna and Reis Butcher combined for five points in the box score. Both Foe and Lovan had a team-high four assists.
Marian ended the second half shooting 44 percent from the floor, making four of their eight three-point shots.
Marian will open their regular season on Monday, November 4, traveling to IU-Southeast. Tip is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. in New Albany.
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