Wesleyan tops Drury for 15th straight win - Kentucky Wesleyan College Athletics

Kentucky Wesleyan College Athletics

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Kentucky Wesleyan College is rolling.

Desmond Stephens scored 23 points and Andree' Wilson hopped off the bench to produce 14 points and nine rebounds, lifting No. 13 KWC to a 79-67 victory over 18th-ranked Drury on Thursday afternoon in Springfield, Mo.

Wesleyan (15-1, 4-0 Great Lakes Valley Conference) won its 15th consecutive game and handed Drury its first home defeat of the season after seven straight victories.

"I was very pleased with our defense, our energy and our toughness," KWC coach Todd Lee said. "It's a great win for our guys. Coming on the road and beating a team like Drury -- that's a job well done for our basketball team.

"Our guys listened to the scouting report and carried it out as well as we've done all season. We knew we had to be sharp in all areas to come away with a victory. I'm really happy about the way we prepared for the game, and then went out and carried out the game plan with outstanding execution at both ends of the floor."

KWC put the hammer down, defensively, in the first half, racing to a 39-21 lead at intermission. Drury (10-3, 3-1) shot 32 percent in the first half, making just 1-of-10 shots from 3-point range.

Wesleyan continued to pour it on during the first 10 minutes of the second half, building its lead to a stunning 63-33 with 9:45 to play.

"I looked up at the scoreboard and saw we were up by 30, and it was hard to believe," Lee said. "Drury is such an outstanding team, and they turned things around and made a run on us there late."

Indeed, over the final 9 1/2 minutes, Drury outscored Wesleyan 34-16 to narrow the final margin and, at least, salvage some pride.

"This win should build some confidence for some of our young guys," said Stephens, who also dished five assists and made four steals. "It's really a step forward when you can beat a quality team on the road."

Everything clicked for KWC, which drained 9-of-18 shots from 3-point range and outrebounded Drury 41-36.

Chris Williams finished with 11 points and eight rebounds, Marico Stinson had 10 points and five rebounds, and Jay Ivey produced nine points and seven rebounds for KWC.

"One of our goals was to get the job done on the boards," Lee said, "and our guys met the challenge with a great rebounding effort."

Drury was led by freshman guard Alex Hall, who scored a game-high 25 points, despite being limited to 5-of-15 shooting (2-of-9 from 3-point range). Hall, who came into the contest hitting 96 percent at the foul stripe, made all 13 of his free throws against Wesleyan.

Sahlih Butts scored 10 points and Dominique Long produced nine points and eight rebounds for Drury.

Kentucky Wesleyan shoots for victory No. 16 in a row at 3 p.m. Saturday against Missouri S&T in Rolla, Mo.

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