DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The No. 4 nationally ranked Mount Union men's basketball team defeated Gettysburg 82-61 in the Land of Magic Classic on Thursday evening.

The Purple Raiders (10-1) had three players score in double figures, with junior Christian Parker (Canton / GlenOak) leading the way with a game-high 16 points. Seniors Jeffery Mansfield (Wilmington) and Collen Gurley (Akron / Hoban) each added 14 points to round out the Raiders in double figures.

The Bullets (4-5) were led by Rassoul Abakar and Carl Schaller who both scored a team-high 12 points.

Gettysburg jumped out to an early 7-0 lead just three minutes into the game. Mount Union would answer with a 7-0 run of their own to tie the game with 16:34 remaining in the first half. The Raiders and Bullets would go on to trade baskets over the next eleven minutes of game time before a pair of Parker free throws sparked a 14-2 run over the final 5:49 of the half to give Mount Union a 44-32 lead heading into the halftime break.

The Bullets would cut the Raider lead down to eight with 14:55 remaining in the game. But that is as close as they would get as Mount Union would answer with a 9-1 run over the next 4:05 to stretch their lead back to 16 and would go on to win 82-61.

The Raiders are on the road again next when they travel to Berea to take on Baldwin Wallace in an Ohio Athletic Conference matchup on Wednesday, January 4 at 7 p.m.