MARION, Ind. -- After trailing at halftime the Indiana Wesleyan University men?s basketball team dominated the second half on Wednesday night in a 53-40 victory over Marian (Ind.) College in Luckey Arena.

The Wildcats overpowered Marian in the second half, guided by a 21-2 run that last nearly 10 minutes early in the period. IWU turned a 26-20 disadvantage into a 41-28 lead.

Indiana Wesleyan (13-4, 2-2 MCC) never let the lead slip below eight points the rest of the contest.

The Wildcats only led for 45 seconds in the first half of play. With the score tied 4-4, junior guard Antonio Murrell drained a three-pointer to hand IWU a brief 7-4 lead. Murrell ended the evening with a game-high 13 points. He also pulled down seven rebounds.

Marian (6-10, 0-5) responded with a three-pointer to tie the game at 7-7. The Knights captured the lead with their next possession and eventually took a 13-7 lead. The two combatants battled over the next 10 minutes of play as Indiana Wesleyan was finally able to tie the game for the third time at 18-18. But a three by Marian gave the Knights a 21-18 advantage.

Marian strolled into intermission with a 23-20 lead.

The Knights looked to keep momentum in the second half as they opened with a three-pointer, taking a 26-20 lead. Indiana Wesleyan quickly responded with the 21-2 run for which Marian could not recover from as the Wildcats earned their fifth consecutive victory with a 53-40 win.

The Wildcat defense put the clamps on the Knights offense all night long. Indiana Wesleyan held Marian to just 25.9-percent (14 of 54) shooting and 22 turnovers. IWU gained the edge in rebounding as well by a 43-33 margin.

Junior guard Jon Moon competed in his first contest of the season and contributed 11 points and six rebounds. Sophomore guard Spencer Harris also scored in double figures as he added 10 points. Sophomore Zach Coverstone earned a game-best 10 rebounds and three blocked shots.

Indiana Wesleyan takes their five game win streak on the road at 3 p.m. on Saturday, January 12, as the Wildcat play No. 11-ranked Bethel (Ind.) College in Mishawaka, Indiana.