COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 4 nationally ranked Mount Union men's basketball team defeated Capital in an Ohio Athletic Conference matchup 79-59 on Saturday afternoon.

The Purple Raiders (12-1, 4-1 OAC) had two players score in double figures, with junior Christian Parker (Canton / GlenOak) leading the way with a game-high 26 points. Freshman Corey Hudson (Columbus / Pickerington) rounded out the Raiders in double figures with 13 points.

The Comets (7-6, 3-3 OAC) were led by Tre Hammond who scored a team-high 11 points.  

Mount Union jumped out to an early 14-2 lead just three and a half minutes into the game. Capital would answer with back-to-back threes to cut the lead down to six with 15:31 left to play in the first half. But a three by Parker sparked a 19-2 run over the next 4:47 to increase the Raider lead to 33-10 with just under 11 minutes remaining in the half. The Comets would answer with a quick 6-0 run before Mount Union would close the half with a 14-5 to take a 47-21 lead into the halftime break.

Capital would cut the Mount Union lead down to 22 with 16:31 remaining in the game but that is as close as they would get until, they cut the lead to 20 in the final 10 second, giving the Raiders a 79-59 victory.

The Raiders return home next when they host Marietta for an OAC showdown on Wednesday, January 11 at 7 p.m. in the McPherson Academic and Athletic Complex in Alliance.