MARIETTA, Ohio — No. 17 Marietta College put together a much better 40 minutes of basketball than they did the night before and went on to defeat La Roche University, 83-73, Saturday (Nov. 12) evening to claim third place in the 51st annual Marietta Shrine Tournament. The Pioneers improve to 1-1 on the season, while the RedHawks fall to 0-2 overall.

After a scoreless first minute, Cooper Parrott nailed a three-pointer to put the Pioneers on the board first. La Roche's Jorden Grayson answered quickly with a three of his own to tie the score. Points were tough to come by in the next few minutes but Sahmi Willoughby's layup at the 14:26 mark of the first half gave the Pioneers a four-point cushion.

Later in the half, Jayden Bradshaw converted all three of his free throws after getting fouled beyond the arc, giving Marietta their biggest lead at that juncture, of six points. Lovenson Xavier extended the lead to eight after stealing a bad La Roche pass and canning a jumper. Jake Singleton added a three to give the Pioneers an 11 point differential. Jac Alexander converted three free throws and followed the next possession with a jump shot to give Marietta firm control, taking a 40-28 lead into halftime.

The two teams traded shots for the first ten minutes of the second half, but a Bradshaw three and an Alexander layup gave Marietta a 21-point lead with nearly nine minutes left. The RedHawks did not give up and went on a 12-0 run, keeping the Pioneers scoreless for more than three minutes.

Willoughby's offensive rebound off a Bradshaw missed free throw and subsequent put back got Marietta back in rhythm, returning the lead to double figures. La Roche could get no closer than seven points and Marietta would cruise to victory in the consolation game.

Parrott led three Pioneers in double figures with 18 points, grabbing five rebounds along the way. Bradshaw finished with 16 points, while Alexander had 12 points and four assists to earn All-Tournament Team honors.

Grayson led all scorers with 20 points. Davon Darrell added 16 points, six rebounds, and six assists to the cause.

In the Championship game, the University of Wisconsin La Crosse defeated Guilford, 74-68.

Marietta will next at the Great Lakes Invitational in Crawfordsville, Indiana on Friday (Nov 18). The Pioneers will first take on Wabash College, with a scheduled tip-off at 7:30 p.m.