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Defense steps up as KWC visits Bellarmine
Marico Stinson and Kwan Waller leads Panthers defensive efforts on the perimeter.

Defense steps up as KWC visits Bellarmine

Kentucky Wesleyan College men's basketball coach Todd Lee saw a lot of things he liked in his Panthers' 86-68 win over No. 2 Southern Indiana on Monday in Evansville.

Nothing, however, impressed him more than the performance of Panther guards Marico Stinson and Kwan Waller -- which might seem surprising since they combined to shoot 1-of-15 from the field.

"They never stopped competing, and they guarded (Jamar) Smith all night," said Lee of the duo holding the Screaming Eagles' top scorer to 10 points on 4-of-15 shooting. "That shows a lot of growth. Most players worry about their offense. It shows a lot of maturity that they were only worried about winning."

Stinson and Waller's development is indicative of the Panthers' overall growth, which has been a season-long process due to limited experience returning from last season.

"I think they're all starting to find roles and are starting to understand how to compete and what we need to do to compete," said Lee, who has seen vast improvement on the defensive end. "I think our guys are buying into it more and understanding the scouting report.

"We haven't shot a great percentage because we don't have a dominant post player. But we've rebounded well all year, and we've taken care of the ball. You do those two things and play good defense, that's what it takes to be successful."

KWC's challenge now is refocusing after such an emotional win for its regular-season finale against host Bellarmine, which tips at 7 p.m. today.

"I don't know how guys will react," said Lee, who isn't sure if Maros Zuffa will have recovered from an illness in time to make the trip to Louisville. "I'm sure it gives us confidence. But we've had other big wins this year, the Evansville (exhibition game win), beating Drury and Quincy.

"The guys like a challenge."

The Panthers (26-3, 15-2 Great Lakes Valley Conference) are expecting just that from a Bellarmine (18-7, 11-5) squad that's on a five-game winning streak, has won nine of its last 10 outings and is 10-1 overall at home, where it's unblemished in conference play.

KWC defeated the Knights 81-65 on Dec. 5, 2009, at the Sportscenter.

"We played them so long ago," said Lee, dismissing it having any factor on the rematch. "They can shoot it. You can't let them get comfortable running their offense, or they'll pick you apart."

Bellarmine has four starters scoring in double figures, led by guard Jeremy Kendle, who averages 17 points per game.

KWC also has four players averaging double-digit points, led by Desmond Stephens' 17.5 ppg. Stephens also leads the GLVC in assists with 6.7 a contest.

* KWC remained No. 1 for the second straight week in the Division II Midwest Region ranking announced Wednesday by the NCAA.

Following KWC are No. 2 Drury, No. 3 Grand Valley State, No. 4 Quincy, No. 5 Findlay, No. 6 Central State, No. 7, Rockhurst, No. 8 Ferris State, No. 9 Bellarmine and No. 10 Saint Joseph's.

The NCAA will announce the 64-team field on March 7.
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