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Ohio Wesleyan 80, Marietta 58
Kenyon 61, Albion 55
Nov. 29, 2008
![[ Kyle Holiday ]](../images/khollid6.jpg)
Senior wing Kyle Holliday (Van Wert) scored 10 points as Ohio Wesleyan built a double-digit first-half lead, and sophomore wing Dillon McBride (Medina) hit a pair of 3-pointers to thwart a Marietta rally as the Bishops defeated the Pioneers in the first round of the OWU/Kenyon Classic on Saturday at Branch Rickey Arena.
In Saturday's opener, Kenyon overcame a 7-point first-half deficit and held Albion at bay down the stretch to edge the Britons.
Ohio Wesleyan will take on Albion in Sunday's opener, set for 2 p.m. at Kenyon College in Gambier, with Kenyon and Marietta set to square off in the nightcap.
Junior post Brent Pleiman (Russia) opened the Bishop scoring with a jumper from the lane and Holliday followed with a lay-in and a 3-pointer as Ohio Wesleyan raced to a 7-0 lead, and the Bishops extended the lead into double figures on lay-ins by freshman post Pat Pellerite (Olmsted Falls), senior wing Kyle Miller (Delaware/Hayes) and Holliday, along with a pair of Pleiman free throws, for a 15-5 edge just under 7 minutes into the game.
Ohio Wesleyan stretched the lead to 29-13 on a 3-pointer by senior wing Mitch Noggle (Dublin/Coffman) with 7:09 left in the half, and the Bishops led by a 39-24 count at the intermission.
The Bishops still led, 46-32, just under 5 minutes into the second half when the Pioneers battled back into the contest.
Marietta got a 3-pointer and a lay-in from Trevor Halter and a lay-in by Zane Carter to close within 48-40 with 12:22 left, and after 3-pointers by Holliday and Miller hiked the Bishop lead back to 54-40, the Pioneers went on an 11-4 run that included a lay-in and a 3-point play by Carter, a lay-in and a pair of free throws from Daun Lutes, and a jumper by Isaiah Creasap that made it 58-51 with 7:32 to go, and after McBride and Kyle Lindquist traded 3-pointers, it was still a 7-point game with the Bishops holding a 61-54 lead with 5:31 remaining.
Holliday and McBride drilled 3-pointers on Ohio Wesleyan's next 2 possessions, stretching the gap to 67-54 with 4:41 to play, and the Bishops pulled away from there, closing the game with a 13-4 run.
Holliday led the Bishops with a career-high 25 points, while Miller finished with 11 points and Pleiman racked up a double-double, posting 10 points and 10 rebounds. Junior guard Rob Gardiner (Dublin/Coffman) led Ohio Wesleyan with 5 assists.
Lutes led Marietta with 13 points, while Halter and Creasap added 11 points apiece.
In Saturday's opener, Albion broke a 9-9 tie with a 7-point run that featured a 3-pointer by Robbie Clark, a jumper by Drew Yancey and a pair of free throws from Dave Elliott to take the biggest lead of the game at 16-9.
Kenyon chipped away at the deficit, eventually tying the game at 21-21 on Allen Bediako's lay-in with 3:27 left in the first half.
The Lords took the lead for good during the second half, breaking a 42-42 tie with a jumper by Dave Jolson and a lay-in by Brian Yelvington at the midway point of the period. Kenyon kept Albion at arm's length from there, allowing the Britons to come closer than 3 points on only one occasion.
Yelvington led Kenyon with 17 points, while Bediako finished with 14 points and Dave Jolson and Jim Arce added 10 points apiece.
Drew Yancey and Andrew Holms shared the Albion lead with 14 points apiece.