Panthers roll in home debut - Kentucky Wesleyan College Athletics

Kentucky Wesleyan College Athletics

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Kentucky Wesleyan College finally got the chance to get its men's basketball team on the home court Tuesday night.

The Panthers upended Hannibal-LaGrange 77-47 in front of 2,000 fans at the Sportscenter. And while they didn't see all of the weapons KWC has, there were some fine individual performances to store away.

Chris Williams had a double-double with 13 points and an impressive 17 rebounds.

"Even though I had 17, I didn't feel like I crashed the boards enough," Williams said. "When Jay Ivey and I crash, we take about three guys with us."

Ivey also had a fine game for the short-handed Panthers, scoring a game-high 16 points and stepping out for a made 3-point shot.

"I've got to attack the lane and stay in it," said Ivey, who did battle around the basket constantly during his 25 minutes of action. "If I can sustain posting up my man in the paint for an entire possession, some shots are going to come my way."

The Panthers (3-1) were without starting point guard Desmond Stephens, who is trying to get healthy; #Andreé Wilson#, who has been suspended; and key reserve Breland McKnight, who is also injured.

"Desmond creates a lot of offense for our guys," KWC coach Todd Lee said.

The Panthers had Travis Owsley as the primary point guard, and he had four assists and no turnovers in 33 minutes. The other double-figure scorer for the Panthers was Maros Zuffa with 12 points.

KWC got a strong start from the 3-point line, hitting five of its first seven from beyond the arc, but it cooled to finish 9-of-19 for the game. The Panthers became dependent on the jumper early in the game, which was a source of irritation to Lee.

"I got on the guys in the middle of the first half," Lee said. "We started to shoot jump shots, which I knew would be an issue. We've got to try to get the guys to understand the difference in a good shot and a great shot. We need to attack the paint."

Lee stayed on that point after the game, according to Williams.

"He talked about knowing the difference between a good and bad shot," Williams said. "Making the extra pass, or running the second offensive concept to get a great shot."

The Panthers still made 27-of-60 from the floor for 45 percent and were 9-of-19 from 3-point range for 47 percent. They hit 14-of-19 from the free-throw line.

They owned a 41-26 advantage on the glass, in large part because of Williams' work.

"Every day at practice, me, Willie Richardson, Marico Stinson and Kwan Waller work on crashing the boards in drills," Williams said. "Everything we do is with two hands. When somebody misses, get to the weak side and grab the ball with two hands. We work on rebounding position, getting to that open area and going for the ball."

The Panthers will have more time to work on fundamentals the rest of this week, with another break until Bryan visits next Tuesday. KWC will have its next 11 games at home, after playing three regular-season and three exhibition games on the road.

"It was real nice to be back at home and see the fans," Lee said. "We have an extended homestand now, and that will be great."

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