Marietta High came oh-so close to upsetting host and No. 5 state-ranked Warren but ended up falling short, 44-39, on Tuesday.
Late in the game, the J.D. Secrest-coached Tigers (6-6) had the lead but to the Warriors' credit, the royal blue and white rallied to claim the victory.
MHS had a three-game winning streak snapped with the setback to Warren.
Now, Marietta has another scheduled toughie when it entertains Coshocton (10-3 overall, 6-2 ECOL) in an East Central Ohio League boys' basketball game at Sutton Gym at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
MHS took it on the chin against the Tom Hilgenberg-coached Redskins in the first meeting at The Wigwam in early December, dropping a 68-42 decision. The Tigers stayed close in the opening period but gradually fell further and further behind.
Nathan Williams and Tim Grosel scored 14 and 13 points, respectively, to pace Marietta. The Tigers committed 21 turnovers in the contest, and were outrebounded 35-25.
Coshocton was led by Brandon Taylor, who had a double-double with 23 points and 12 rebounds, both game-highs. Drew Jarvis added 16 counters, and Tanner Cognion chipped in with eight markers and three steals.
A few other Redskins to keep an eye on will be Curtis Blake, Brody Philabaum, and Evan Johnson.
Last Friday night, Coschocton defeated New Philadelphia, 61-56.
Marietta is expected to start Eli Lenington, Justin Futrell, Braden Riley, Grosel and Williams. Look for Jordan Satterfield and Matt Thompson to be the first Tigers off the pine.
At Vincent, MHS got off to a slow start against Warren, trailing 17-4 at the end of the first quarter. The Tigers didn't score their first field goal until 14 seconds were left in the stanza.
But sparked by Grosel, Riley and Williams, the Tigers came back with a vengeance in the second period and tied the contest at 23-all at the intermission.
Marietta took its first lead of the game in the third quarter, but it was short-lived as the advantage went back and forth. Late in the final period, the orange and black led 39-37 but couldn't hold on.
Dating back to last season, MHS has suffered four straight defeats to Warren in which the outcome was decided by five points or less (59-56, 58-54, 53-48 and Tuesday's game 44-39). The Tigers are scheduled to get another crack at the Warriors to rectify matters on Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, at Sutton Gym.
