Marian University Athletics
2024-25 Top 10 Moments

#2 - Men's Basketball Goes Undefeated in First Half

After earning just five wins the previous season, Marian University men's basketball had a bounce-back season that began with a perfect 11-0 record in the first half of the 2024-25 campaign.

The Sabres opened this hot stretch with a pair of wins over UW-Superior and UW-Stout at the Merrill Thompson Classic.  The victory over the Blue Devils was the first triumph for the Sabres over UWS since 1989.  After a convincing win over Maranatha Baptist in their home opener, the Sabres found themselves on the right end of three straight games decided by five or fewer points.  The stretch opened with a four-point win at Beloit that saw Marian erase an 11-point deficit in the second half and cap off the win with a blocked triple attempt with six seconds remaining.  Then in the return to Sadoff Gym, Marian led Lawrence by eight with 1:37 left to play only for the Vikings to cut that deficit to two with 30 seconds on the clock.  The Sabres held off the rally, however, with a defensive stop and 3-of-4 shooting from the charity stripe.

The final game in this stretch proved to be an instant classic as the Sabres narrowly edged Buena Vista 102-98 in double overtime.  Marian trailed 76-65 with 3:20 left in regulation before going on an 11-2 run to only trail by two with 26 seconds on the clock.  After going back-and-forth over the final half minute, a triple at the horn off of a missed Beaver free throw saw senior Mahlik Hall send the game into overtime.  The opening overtime had Marian on the ropes again but the Sabres erased a five-point deficit to force a second overtime at 91-91.  A 97-97 stalemate was broken by freshman Harper Krolak who hit a three-pointer with 1:43 left to give Marian the lead for good.  Krolak and junior Trey Jenkins then iced the game with free throws to put the final at 102-98.  It was the first time Marian scored more than 100 points since 2022.

After that thriller, Marian headed to the West Coast to take on NCAA Division I opponent San Diego in an exhibition.  The Sabres gave the Toreros all they could leading 38-31 at halftime and 48-40 with 16:13 to play.  San Diego got back in the game with a 13-5 run that knotted the score at 53-53 with 7:54 on the clock.  The Sabres managed to hold onto the lead 59-58 with 4:14 to play, but USD was able to pull away with eight unanswered points to lead by seven with 40 seconds remaining.

A pair of smooth wins over Illinois Tech and Benedictine then opened NACC play for the Sabres before another thriller against Aurora in Sadoff Gym.  The largest lead for either side was a mere four points in a game that saw 22 lead changes and the score tied another 16 times.  The Spartans found themselves with a 56-53 cushion with 6.4 seconds before junior Brandon Adorno hit a three-pointer at the horn to force overtime.  Aurora opened the extra session with the lead, but Marian was able to go on a 12-3 run to lead by eight points and earn another comeback win.

The final two games of the first half weren't nearly as dramatic as Marian defeated Edgewood by 27 and Northland by 39 to finish the first half 11-0 and 4-0 in conference play.  Marian finished the first half tied for first in NCAA Division III for wins, eighth for turnover margin, 10th for scoring defense, and 23rd for three-point defense.

Marian went on to earn a spot in the NACC Tournament for the third time in four years and had one of the biggest turnarounds in NCAA Division III finishing with 16 wins.  The Sabres closed out the season second in the NACC for scoring defense and turnover margin, while also ranking fourth for opponent field goal percentage.  Adorno along with sophomore Andrew Ayeni each earned All-NACC honors, while junior Alex Vassilakis was a CSC Academic All-District pick.