November 15, 2014
Marmelstein hits 1,000 as Wolverines win opener
GROVE CITY, Pa. -- Senior guard Mitch Marmelstein (San Juan Capistrano, Calif./St. Margaret's) scored a game-high 21 points and reached the 1,000-point plateau for his career as the Grove City College men's basketball team overcame a cold-shooting first half to open the 2014-15 season with a 58-43 non-conference victory over Franciscan on Saturday afternoon in the Grove City College Arena.
Marmelstein, who entered today's game with 982 career points, became the 26th player in program history to reach the milestone on a free throw with 52 seconds remaining in the second half.
Junior Caleb Knudsen (Saylorsburg, Pa./Pius X), who transferred in from Eastern this season, and freshman Cory Huff (Kersey, Pa./Elk County Catholic) each added 13 points in the victory.
Grove City (1-0) struggled to score early on, connecting on just two of their first 14 shot attempts as Franciscan (0-1) jumped out to an early 13-4 lead. The Wolverines would chip away and take the lead with a 14-2 run spanning nearly six minutes, tying the game at 15-15 on a three by senior Brian Giesler (Harrisville, Pa./Slippery Rock) and leading 18-15 following a Knudsen layup with 6:53 remaining in the period.
Franciscan would answer back, retaking the lead at 21-19 on a Moses Sullivan layup with 4:18 remaining, but Huff would score the final basket of the half with a layup at the 2:04 mark to send the teams into halftime tied at 21-21.
Knudsen led the Wolverines with seven first-half points while Marmelstein was held to just three points on one-for-six shooting. Sullivan led all scorers with 11 first-half points. Grove City shot just under 30 percent from the floor in the opening period (8-27).
Early in the second half, it appeared as if the scoring difficulties would continue, as a Knudsen free throw would be the only point through the opening two minutes of the frame. Marmelstein would change that quickly, nailing a trio of threes and scoring 13-straight Grove City points to give the Wolverines a 35-23 lead and bring him within two points of 1,000 with 13:41 remaining in the game.
The Wolverine lead would swell to 17 at 44-27 on a Knudsen three at the 10:52 mark, but the Barons would battle back once again, taking advantage of eight-consecutive Grove City misses to cut the deficit to five at 46-41 with 4:09 to play.
Huff would end the drought with a layup and then hit a pair of free throws to push Grove City's lead back to 50-41, and Marmelstein would earn a pair of free throws at the 1:36 mark for a chance at the milestone. After making the first to give the Wolverines a 10-point lead, Marmelstein missed the second to remain a single point shy of the goal.
He would get his chance, however, with 52 seconds remaining as Franciscan was playing the foul game in a late comeback attempt. Marmelstein sank the first free throw for point number 1,000 and, after receiving a nice ovation from the crowd, also made the second, adding another layup later to conclude the game at 1,003 career points.
Sullivan led the Barons with 17 points while Christian Duke added 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Grove City forced Franciscan into 32 turnovers for the game, resulting in a decisive 28-7 Wolverine advantage in points off turnovers.
Grove City returns to action on Wednesday, hosting Pitt-Greensburg in a non-conference game at 6:30 p.m.
GROVE CITY'S 1,000-POINT CLUB
1-Jeff Claypool (1965-69) 2,234
2-Bob Crow (1979-83) 1,450
3-Joe Buckley (1985-89) 1,413
4-John Cochran (1966-70) 1,352
5-Tanner Prosser (1999-2003) 1,263
6-Mark Timko (1991-94) 1,255
7-Fred Schwab (1970-74) 1,215
8-Deron Ryan (1984-88) 1,205
9-Tim Mokma (1987-91) 1,197
10-Bill Fox (1975-79) 1,192
11-Tom Robinson (1957-62) 1,181
12-Mark Smith (1979-83) 1,171
13-Andy O'Keefe (2006-10 1,164
14-Jim Wherley (1993-97) 1,162
15-Bart Niemeyer (1958-62) 1,145
16-Shawn Carr (2004-08) 1,121
17-Brett Matson (2008-12) 1,108
18-Benjamin Davis (1990-94) 1,094
19-Ryan Gibson (2005-09) 1,079
20-Dave Marovich (1962-65) 1,072
21-Ron Arrington (1962-66) 1,069
22-Ryan Eller (2001-05) 1,068
23-Mike Donahoe (1975-79) 1,051
24-Dan Von Handorf (1992-96) 1,029
25-Dutch Leonard (1955-59) 1,013
26-MITCH MARMELSTEIN (2011-Pres.) 1,003
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