MADISON, Wisconsin (SabreAthletics.com) – The Marian University men's basketball team fell for the fifth straight time this evening, Jan. 5, as a late-game run carried Edgewood College from a three-point deficit to a 65-53 win inside the Edgedome.

The Sabres (6-7, 5-3 NACC), leading 40-37 with 12:18 remaining in the second half, watched the Eagles (6-7, 5-3 NACC) close out the game on a 28-13 run. Marian committed 18 turnovers and was unable to take advantage of a 30-21 rebounding edge, which led to a 12-4 lead in second chance points. Edgewood snapped a six-game losing skid in the all-time series with the win.

Josh Creed led Marian with 15 points on 4-for-11 shooting, while Montrell Hobbs added 10 points to go along with eight rebounds. Edgewood was led by Tal Diekvoss, who scored 11 points on 3-of-5 shooting – all attempts coming from three-point range – while Derek Braucht added 10 points. The Eagles received a balanced scoring effort across the board as 10 different players reached the scoring column.

A Montrell Hobbs tip-in capped an 8-2 run to begin the second half and gave the Sabres their largest lead of the game at 36-31 with 14:51 left. The Eagles would cut the deficit to one point before Creed knocked down a mid-range jumper to make it 40-37 with just over 12 minutes remaining. 

Trailing 40-39, Adam Freitag made the most of his 9 minutes of action when he hit back-to-back three-pointers to give Edgewood a 45-42 advantage. The lead would balloon to 12 points with 2:36 left and, just as Marian cut the deficit to 58-48 with still enough time for a potential comeback, Joe Klocek provided the dagger with a three-pointer from the wing to make it 61-48 with just 1:46 left.

Marian's untimely turnovers coupled with key baskets by Edgewood proved to be their demise.

Marian trailed 29-28 at the half after shooting over 48 percent from the field and led by as many as three points. It was the three-ball that gave the Sabres much-needed momentum bursts in the first stanza, thanks to a pair of triples by Alex Stecker and two more by Carvell Oliver and Connor Morovits. Marian was 4-for-8 from downtown in the opening 20 minutes and 0-for-5 in the second half, culminating in just a 36 percent shooting performance.

It's been a rough couple of weeks for a team that ran through the NACC a year ago en route to a conference regular season and tournament championship, having already matched the three losses they suffered in league play all of last season. Marian will have a chance to regroup, however, when it heads to Rockford this Saturday, Jan. 10. Tip-off is set for 4:15 p.m.