MOUNT VERNON, Ohio -- For the second time in four days Jonny Marlin (SR/Greenwood, Ind.) scored the game-winner with under two seconds left as No. 4 Indiana Wesleyan University men’s basketball defeated host Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) 85-83. The victory sets up a huge regular season finale on Saturday as IWU hosts No. 3 Saint Francis (Ind.) in Luckey Arena. An Indiana Wesleyan win would create a tie for the Crossroads League championship.

Game Vitals

• Score:  Indiana Wesleyan - 85   |   Mount Vernon Nazarene - 83
• Records:  Indiana Wesleyan 26-3, 14-3 Crossroads League   |   Mount Vernon Nazarene 13-16, 5-12 Crossroads League
• NAIA Top- 25 Rank:  Indiana Wesleyan - No. 4   |   Mount Vernon Nazarene - Not ranked
• Location:   Ariel Arena   |   Mount Vernon Nazarene University   |   Mount Vernon, Ohio 
• Brief:  For the second time in four days Jonny Marlin scored the game-winner with under two seconds left as No. 4 Indiana Wesleyan University men’s basketball defeated host Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) 85-83. The victory sets up a huge regular season finale on Saturday as IWU hosts No. 3 Saint Francis (Ind.) in Luckey Arena. An Indiana Wesleyan win would create a tie for the Crossroads League championship.
   

What Went Down

• Indiana Wesleyan earned their largest lead of the night just nine minutes in as they pulled ahead 21-10.
• Six minutes later Mount Vernon Nazarene tied the score 31-31 for the fifth tie of the game.
• The opening 20 minutes ended in a 43-43 tie. There were eight ties and six lead changes in the opening half.
• Jacob Johnson (SO/Mooresville, Ind.) scored with eight minutes remaining to give the Wildcats a 74-67 lead. The seven point advantage was the largest during the second half.
• Mount Vernon Nazarene chipped away at the Indiana Wesleyan lead and eventually tied the score 81-81 with a basket with 1:04 remaining.
• Josh Mawhorr (SR/Muncie, Ind.) put the Wildcats back on top with a pair of free throws with 40 seconds to go.
• Jordi Mas answered for the Cougars with a bucket with 21 seconds left for an 83-83 tie.
• Following a timeout, Indiana Wesleyan inbounded the ball to Jonny Marlin. He held the ball for the full possession and hit a jump shot from the elbow and scored the game-winner with 1.7 seconds left.
• Five Wildcats ended the night in double figures. Lane Mahurin (JR/Rockville, Ind.) finished with 22 points, Bob Peters (JR/Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) had 18 points, Jonny Marlin added 12 points, and Josh Mawhorr and Grant Evans (SO/Selma, Ind.) each contributed 11 points.
  
   

Extra! Extra!

• Jonny Marlin scored the game-winning basket on Saturday in a 91-90 win at No. 25 Grace (Ind.). With Indiana Wesleyan down one point, Marlin scored the winner with 1.4 seconds remaining.
• Lane Mahurin has scored 18 or more points in nine straight games.
• Indiana Wesleyan is 11-0 all-time vs. Mount Vernon Nazarene since MVNU joined the Crossroads League in the 2011-12 season.
  
   

Next Time Out

• Indiana Wesleyan hosts No. 3 Saint Francis (Ind.) at 3 p.m. on Saturday in Luckey Arena. The regular season finale has all sorts of implications for the Crossroads League as Saint Francis holds a one game lead heading into Saturday. Indiana Wesleyan needs to win to clinch a share of the regular season title with Saint Francis, which would be the eighth straight for IWU. A USF win completes an outright title. Indiana Wesleyan and Saint Francis are both chasing the No. 1 seed in the Crossroads League Tournament.