VIENNA, WV – The Malone University men's basketball team finished off the season sweep of the Ohio Valley Fighting Scots on Tuesday night with a 101-85 win on the road. The Pioneers went wire-to-wire in the victory and tied a season-high in points scored, matching their total from a week ago at Tiffin.
 
Malone improves to 9-6 overall and 8-6 in Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) play. Ohio Valley falls to 3-14 both on the season and in league play.
 
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED:
Malone opened up the game on a 12-2 run that included six points from Jaret Majestic off of a pair of three-point makes and six from Levi Seiler. Ohio Valley worked to make it a five-point game at 17-12 with 13:56 remaining in the first.
 
Marcus Ernst began feasting after not attempting a shot in the first seven minutes of play. The big man scored on four of the next five possessions and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field in the first. A three from Brian Read made it 30-18 Pioneers midway through the period.
 
Six straight from the Fighting Scots got Ohio Valley back to within two possessions, but it was the closest they would get the rest of the night. The Pioneers went on a 13-4 run to extend the advantage to 43-28 with four minutes to go in the first half.
 
Bryce Butler had some late points in the period to give Malone a 50-37 lead at the half. The Pioneers shot 60.6% (20-for-33) in the first half, with Ernst leading the way at 13 points and five rebounds.
 
Three-point shots by Jaret Majestic and Bo Myers worked to extend the lead to 18 at 64-46 four minutes into the second. Bryce Butler recorded assists on both three-point makes, two of his game-high seven.
 
Another three from Majestic a few minutes later gave Malone their biggest lead of the game at 79-54 with 12:23 to play.
 
The Pioneers rattled off three consecutive shots from beyond the arc, two from Butler and one from Justin Miller, to keep the lead at 24, 88-64.
 
The Fighting Scots went on a small run to close the game, but it was not enough as the Pioneers cruised to a 101-85 victory. Three Pioneers tied for the team lead in scoring with 21 total points and Christian Alley led for Ohio Valley with 18.
 
PIONEER POINTS:

• After shooting 60.6% (20-for-33) in the first, Malone finished the game at 58.5% (38-for-65). The Pioneers were 13-for-23 (56.5%) from behind the three-point line in the game, including nine makes in 13 attempts in the second. It is a season-high in both percentages for Malone in a game this season.
• Bryce Butler tied for lead in scoring for the Pioneers with 21 points. It is the third time in the last four games that Butler scored more than 20 points. Butler also pulled down six rebounds and dished out a team-high seven assists.
• Marcus Ernst also finished with 21 points on 9-of-11 from the field, and added a game-high 11 rebounds. It is his seventh double-double of the season and 22nd in his career.
• Bo Myers netted 21 points off of six made field goals, three shots from deep and 6-for-7 from the free throw line. Myers pulled down seven boards and distributed four assists as well.
• Jaret Majestic connected on five shots from long range and tied his best shooting percentage for the season when he was 5-for-9 in a 99-87 win versus Cedarville. Majestic went for 17 points in Tuesday's win, making his two highest scoring totals on the season against the Fighting Scots.

 
UP NEXT:
Malone returns home for a one-off game at Osborne Hall on Thursday night versus Tiffin University. Tip-off is set for 8 pm.