NEW CONCORD, Ohio — Marietta College outscored Muskingum University 15-8 in overtime to post a thrilling 107-100 win Wednesday (Feb. 14) evening in Ohio Athletic Conference men's basketball action. The Pioneers improve to 19-5 overall and 13-4 in the OAC. Muskingum falls to 9-15 on the season and 7-10 in conference play.

"That was a game for the ages. Two rivals battling it out to the bitter end," Marietta head coach Jon VanderWal said. "Give Muskie credit, they played their tails off and made a lot of plays. I'm just happy our guys were able to step up and make just a couple more in overtime."

Dillon Young led five Pioneers in double figures with a career-high 29 points. The Marietta point guard hit three triples and dished out a game-high seven assists. Caleb Hoyng and Anthony Wallace came off the bench to score 19 and 16 points, respectively.

Avery Williams notched his fifth double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Kyle Dixon chipped in with 11 points and six boards.

Marcus Dempsey, the OAC's leading scorer, poured in 42 points in the losing effort. Jacob Geller posted a double-double with 20 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Devon Peart added 16 points and six boards.

Muskingum grabbed the early lead and a three-pointer from Jalen Paige gave the Muskies their biggest advantage of the night, 12-6, four minutes into the game.

The Pioneers answered with a 12-2 run to go in front by four, 18-14, midway through the first half. Wallace triggered the run scoring three straight Marietta baskets. The Pioneers took a slim 40-38 lead into halftime.

After trading small leads through the first 10 minutes of the second half, a layup from Geller knotted the game at 67-67. But a pair of three-pointers from Hoyng and another from Dixon sparked an 11-2 run for the Pioneers giving Marietta a nine-point lead, 78-69, with 8:50 left in the game.

The Muskies refused to roll over and turned to Dempsey who drained a three-pointer and scored seven points during a 16-7 run for Muskingum to tie the game, 90-90, with 1:15 left on the clock.

A layup from Hoyng with 52 seconds left gave Marietta a two-point lead. But it was short-lived as Dempsey nailed a jumper four seconds later to even the score at 92-92. Both teams missed three-point attempts in the final seconds sending the game into overtime.

In the extra period Dempsey converted a pair of free throws to put Muskingum in front, 98-97, with 1:56 remaining. Young answered with a three-pointer and a jumper from Wallace gave Marietta a four-point lead, 102-98, with 1:06 left on the clock.

The Muskies were forced to foul and the Pioneers sank 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to secure the victory.

For the game, Marietta shot 56.5% (39-of-69) from the floor, 50.0% (11-of-22) from three-point range and 78.3% (18-of-23) at the line. The Muskies were 37-of-74 (50.0%) from the floor, 11-of-32 (34.4%) behind the arc and 15-of-20 (75.0%) at the line.

Muskingum outrebounded the Pioneers, 41-34. Marietta turned the ball over 11 times, while the Muskies committed 13 turnovers.

Marietta closes out the regular season at Ohio Northern University on Saturday (Feb. 17). Tip off is set for 3 p.m.