GRANVILLE, Ohio – Denison University fended off a last-second shot and held on for a 63-62 win against Kenyon College on Saturday in a North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) men's basketball matchup at Livingston Gymnasium.
 
Kenyon fell to 6-13 and 3-9 in the NCAC while Denison improved to 7-12 and 4-8.  
 
Ugnius Zilinskas led all scorers with 17 points and tied for the game-high with nine rebounds. Senior Carter Powell added 16 points on a season-best four 3-pointers while fellow classmate Ryan O'Neil chipped in with nine points.
 
The first half was tightly contested as the biggest lead either team got was five points. That advantage was attained by the Lords. With the score tied at 11-11, Zilinskas scored five straight to give Kenyon a little cushion at the 13:13 mark.
 
Denison followed to retake the lead at 18-16. The hosts scored seven in a row capped off by a Nate Haller three-ball with 11:28 remaining. Over the remainder of the half, the Big Red never relinquished their lead, but took just a one-point advantage into the locker room, 28-27.
 
After the break, the two teams returned to their closely-played competition.
 
A little over four minutes in, Powell scored a three from Kamal Aubakirov, tying the game at 38. That sparked a 7-0 run for Kenyon, and after a jumper from Powell at 13:06, Kenyon led 42-38. Denison, as it did earlier, responded to reclaim the lead.
 
The Big Red hit three-straight three-pointers a couple minutes later, including two from Haller, to go up 47-42, with just under 10 minutes left. Despite losing the lead there, the Lords got it back twice more, with their last coming at 53-49 after Kase Cronin's layup at 7:07.
 
The tension would remain in the final six minutes. Denison went in front again, 54-53, after Kevin Cheng's three-pointer at 5:42. DU's Freeman Brou then extended the advantage to six, 63-57, after two free throws with 47 ticks left.
 
Powell and the Lords made things interesting after that. The senior hit another three, bringing the score to 63-60 with 40 seconds left. A possession later, Powell was fouled from the left wing which resulted in three free throws. He hit two to make it a one-point game, 63-62. Kenyon forced a blocked shot on Denison's next possession which gave the purple and white one more chance with 10 seconds left.
 
The Big Red's defense turned them away, though. Denison defended Zilinskas and Powell well, and a reverse layup from Cronin with about one second left was met with a double-team, and the ensuing rebound game to the hosts.
 
Kenyon will stay on the road for its next game which comes on Wednesday at The College of Wooster at 7 p.m.