WILKES-BARRE – Trailing by 17 points at the half and ten with 6:35 left in the game, the Wilkes University men's basketball team rallied to tie the game with under two minutes only to see its comeback fall short in the Colonels 78-75 MAC Freedom loss against Arcadia University Saturday afternoon at the Marts Center.
 
Wilkes fell to 11-12 overall and 6-8 in MAC Freedom play following the home defeat. Arcadia improved to 12-11 overall and 8-7 in league contests.
 
With Arcadia leading 72-62 with under seven minutes to play in the second half, the Colonels began their comeback attempt using an 11-1 run over three minutes to tie the game at 73 with 2:55 on the clock. A three-pointer from Arcadia's Justin Money followed by one of two free throws from Money gave the Knights a four-point advantage at 77-73 with 1:20 remaining. Lukas Lesko hit a jumper on the ensuing possession to cut the deficit to two and the Colonels forced an Arcadia turnover giving a chance for a tie or go-ahead shot with :41 left.
 
Lesko freed himself for a good look at a three-point attempt, but the shot fell off the mark and Arcadia corralled the rebound where Wilkes was forced to foul with :23. Dom Vazquez made one of two from the line and Wilkes elected to use its last timeout of the game to setup a game-tying play. Drake Marshall (Gainesville, VA/Patriot) forced up a three-point attempt as time expired and the shot hit the front of the rim and bounced away to seal the Arcadia road league victory in the process.
 
Arcadia built its double-digit lead throughout the first half with superb shooting as the Knights finished 21-for-28 from the floor shooting over 75 percent form the field and 6-for-8 from long range. A Darius Isaac trey gave the Knights their largest advantage of the game up 51-32 with 2:29 before the halftime horn. Arcadia's Jalen Watkins and Wilkes' Drake Marshall (Gainesville, VA/Patriot) were the primary scorers in the first half for both teams each finishing with double figures in scoring. Watkins had 18 points at the break and Marshall 11 for the Colonels.
 
Marshall led all Wilkes scorers with a team-high 24 points on 10-for-13 shooting including 3-for-4 from behind the arc. Lesko followed with 14 points while Jack Argento (Hershey, PA/Hershey) rounded out the double figure scorers posting 12 points off the Colonel bench.
 
Watkins poured in a game-high 27 points and six rebounds finishing 13-for-17 from the field. Money added 16 points including three treys and Nas Johnson chipped in 11 points and six rebounds for the Knights. The Arcadia offense cooled down in the second half to allow for the Wilkes comeback, but the Knights still shot 63.8 percent (30-47) from the field as a team including 8-for-17 from long range.
 
Wilkes continues its final stretch of MAC Freedom play Tuesday when the Colonels welcome cross-town rival King's College at 6:00 p.m. on Senior Night in the Marts Center.