Men’s Basketball Falls Short in Season Opener at Westminster

The Muskingum men's basketball team opened up the season at Westminster on day one of the two-day Westminster Tipoff Classic in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. The Titans and Muskies took turns exchanging lead changes throughout the contest, but Westminster grabbed the victory, 89-80.

The Basics

• Records: Muskingum (0-1 overall), Westminster (2-0 overall)
• Location: New Wilmington, Pennsylvania – Buzz Ridl Gymnasium

Inside the Numbers

• Marcus Dempsey paced the team with 26 points, going 7-for-9 from the free throw line (77.8%), shooting 9-for-18 from the field (50%), and dishing out a career-high eight assists.
• Jarrell Marsh also added 26 points, shooting 5-for-9 from the arc (55.6%) and going 9-for-19 from the field (47.4%), while creating a team-best six steals.
• Jacob Geller grabbed seven total rebounds and added six points.
• Mitch Clark contributed nine points, making 3-of-5 three-pointers.
• The team made 14-of-19 free throws, while shooting 28-for-65 (43.1%) from the field, and 10-for-31 from the arc (31.3%).
• Three Titan players knotted double-digit scoring.
• Jarret Vrabel led the Titans offense with 21 points and racked up nine rebounds, while Cameron Kane-Johnson added 19 points, and Deontay Scott chipped in 16 points.  
• As a team, Westminster went 12-for-13 (92.3%) at the free throw line, 47.8% from the three-point line (11-for-23), and 47.1% from the field (33-for-70).  

Game Highlights

The first half consisted of four lead changes between both squads, as the Muskies and Titans played neck-and-neck. The momentum of the game switched in Westminter's favor at the six-minute marker as they went on an 11-4 run to increase the lead to 40-28. A layup by Devon Peart and a made free throw by Marcus Dempsey cut the deficit down, 39-31 with 64 seconds left. Seconds later, a three-pointer by Isaac Stamatiades extended the largest lead of the first half for the Titians to 42-31. The Muskies closed out the first half with a Jarrell Marsh jumper as time expired. The Titans edged the Muskies in field-goal percentage 43.9% to 41.4% as they held the 43-33 advantage at the half.

A seven-point run by the Muskies in the second half pushed them to a 62-61 lead with 8:09 remaining in the contest. Muskingum held the lead until Westminster's Cameron Kane-Johnson notched a three-pointer to take the 72-69 advantage at the 4:36 marker. With 3:07 left, Mitch Clark drilled a three-pointer to cut the Titans lead down to two points, 74-72. The Muskies shooting went cold for the next several possessions until Marsh made back-to-back three-pointers in the waning seconds of the game. Westminster used a 23-12 run to close the game to secure the win.

Up Next

• Muskingum will wrap-up the Westminster Tipoff Classic playing against Thiel on Saturday in New Westminster, PA. Game time is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.