Knights erase deficit, roll past Rio men

Rio Grande Sports Information
     INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - The University of Rio Grande built a seven-point first half lead, but then managed only one field goal over a span of just under 12 minutes as host Marian University rallied and continued to pull away for an eventual 79-54 win over the RedStorm, Saturday afternoon, in non-conference men's basketball action at the Physical Education Center.
     The Knights won for a sixth straight time, pushing their season record to 11-2.
     Rio Grande, which defeated Marian in the opening round of last year's NAIA national tournament, dropped a fifth straight outing and moved to 7-7 with the loss.
     The RedStorm led 33-26 after a three-pointer by sophomore Trey Robertson (Waverly, OH) but failed to score another point before the intermission as the Knights closed the half on a 10-0 run for a 36-33 lead at the break.
     Senior Miki Tadic (Hilversum, The Netherlands) hit Rio's first shot attempt of the second period - a three-pointer with 19:36 remaining which pulled head coach Ryan Arrowood's squad within 38-36 - but by the time that sophomore Trent Hundley (Mt. Orab, OH) connected for the RedStorm's next bucket on a three-pointer with 11:10 left to play, the deficit had reached 16 points.
     Rio got no closer than the 13 points after Hundley's trifecta and Marian led by as many as 27 points with just over one minute remaining.
     Brody Whitaker scored a game-high 23 points to lead a trio of double-digit scorers for the Knights, while Gus Etchison added 17 points to go along with five rebounds and a game-high six assists.
     Josh Bryan netted 13 points and Jackson Ames had a game-high eight rebounds for Marian, which shot 49 percent overall (26-for-53), 50 percent from distance (10-for-20) and 74 percent at the foul line (17-for-23).
     The Knights also enjoyed a 37-28 edge in rebounding.
     Rio Grande shot 37 percent overall (20-for-54), including a 7-for-22 showing from three-point range (32%), but was just 6-for-24 overall in the second half.
     Hundley led the RedStorm with 20 points, while Tadic chipped in with 12 points, five rebounds and three assists. Robertson also had three assists in a losing cause.
     Rio Grande returns to action on Jan. 3 when it resumes its River States Conference schedule at Indiana University Kokomo.