The Aurora University men's basketball team took a big first half lead and carried it to victory as the Spartans defeated Marian University 92-73 in Tuesday night #NACCtion

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE:  Aurora University 92, Marian University 73
LOCATION: Aurora, Illinois; Lancaster Court in Thornton Gymnasium
RECORDS: Aurora University 8-8 overall and 6-5 in the NACC; Marian University 4-12 overall and 2-9 in the NACC

BOX SCORE: View Here

HOW IT HAPPENED
- After giving up the first points of the game AU went on to score seven unanswered points. This included five points from Demetrius Pointer.  
- Marian pulled closer to make the score 13-10 in favor of AU but a short jumper from Jarek Hotwagner put AU up 15-10 with 12:46 remaining in the half.
- The game remained close with AU up three (18-15) until Justin Wierzgac hit a three in the corner followed by a three from Bailey Vance to put AU up 24-15 with 9:52 remaining in the first half.
- After producing a defensive turnover led to a three-pointer from Tyler Carlson AU took a 31-20 lead with 5:13 remaining in the first half. This became part of an eventual 9-0 run for the Spartans.
- The 9-0 run later turned into a 15-2 run as AU led big late in the half.
- A pair of free throws from Bailey Vance gave AU the 47-27 lead going into the end of the first half.
- The second half started with both teams trading shots and AU maintaining their 20 point lead. A three from Garrett Hoffman gave AU the 58-36 lead with 13:39 remaining in the game.
- A 9-2 Marian run decreased the AU lead to 15 (71-56) until Rashad Johnson three point splash gave the momentum back to the Spartans as they followed up with a 12-0 run.
- The Johnson three led AU their largest lead of the game at 26 points (82-56) with 4:21 left in the game.
-  AU went on to defeat Marian University 92-73.

TOP SPARTAN PERFORMERS
- Jarek Hotwagner had a double-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.
- Bailey Vance had 17 points to lead all scorers while adding four assists and four blocked shots.
- Demetrius Pointer had 15 points and three assists.
- Tyler Carlson had 13 points and six rebounds.

SPARTAN GAME STAT LEADERS
POINTS: Bailey Vance (17) and Demetrius Pointer (15)
REBOUNDS: Jarek Hotwagner (10) and Tyler Carlson (6)
ASSISTS: Jarek Hotwagner (7) and Bailey Vance (4) 
STEALS: Tyler Carlson and Demetrius Pointer (3)

UP NEXT
Next action for the Spartan men's basketball team comes on Saturday, January 19 when they host Lakeland University. Game time is set for 4:15 p.m. on Lancaster Court in Thornton Gymnasium.