COLLEGE BASKETBALL Two area players clash in OAC test

Rayen's Clay Sanders plays for Mt. Union and Boardman's Matt Marks for B-W.
By JOHN KOVACH
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
Two area college basketball players will be opposing starters Wednesday night in a quarterfinal game of the Ohio Athletic Conference tournament.
Clay Sanders, a 5-foot-11 junior point guard for Mount Union College from The Rayen School, and Matt Marks, a 6-5 freshman forward for Baldwin-Wallace College from Boardman High, will square off in the 7:30 p.m. game at Ursprung Gymnasium in Berea.
Sanders has been an effective playmaker for Mount Union (16-9, 11-7 OAC), leading the conference in assists to turnovers ratio (2.30). He also is No. 2 in assists with 4.96 behind Tom Harrington of B-W (5.4).
Sanders is shooting 52.5 percent from the field, and is averaging 9.6 points.
Marks perfect at line
Marks has been perfect at the free throw line for Baldwin-Wallace (18-7, 13-5), making all 22 this season. He is averaging 7.8 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.
Marks had 13 points and seven rebounds in B-W's 86-76 win over Otterbein last Saturday.
Joining Sanders on the Mount Union team is Eric Fender, a 6-2 freshman from Poland. Fender has played 12 games and is averaging 2.5 points per contest. He is 9-for-14 from the field (64.3 percent), including 8-for-12 (66.7 percent) from 3-point range.
Also with the B-W team are David Rispinto, a 6-0 freshman from Springfield, and Scott Day, a 6-2 freshman from Howland.
The leaders
Thad Davis has been B-W's leader, averaging 19.4 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. The other starters are Tori Davis (14.2 ppg, 7.6 rpg), Keith Aufmuth (13.4 ppg) and Tom Harrington (8.4 ppg).
Mount Union's leaders have been Brad Gerard, Rob Paulauskas and Chris Blakely. Gerard is averaging 11.6 points per game, while Paulauskas is at 11.3, and Blakely averages 5.4 rebounds. MUC's other starter is Curtis Stevens, a 6-5 senior forward (9.6 ppg, 4.0 rpg).
B-W, which has defeated Mount Union twice this season, is seeded third in the tournament while MUC is No. 6. The Purple Raiders have a three-game winning streak, while B-W is on a two-game losing streak after winning nine in a row.
The winner of Wednesday's game will advance to a semifinal Friday.
kovach@vindy.com