Lee wants KWC to up defensive intensity - Kentucky Wesleyan College Athletics

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The Kentucky Wesleyan College men's basketball team will have to start guarding better to have continued success on its current road trip, as well as throughout the rest of the season, coach Todd Lee said Monday.

"We don't defend very well," said Lee said of his impression after KWC's 81-73 overtime victory at Wisconsin-Parkside on Sunday.

The No. 10 Panthers are at St. Joseph's tonight for their second game in three days on their opening road trip of the Great Lakes Valley Conference season.

Lee gave KWC (8-1, 1-1) credit for what it did in the first half when it didn't have the basketball. It held Parkside to 31-percent shooting from the floor in the first 20 minutes. Parkside, however, scorched KWC with 66.7-percent shooting in the second half.

The Panthers often have to work through different personnel from season to season, and this year's roster is still adjusting to how difficult the GLVC can be.

"We've had that problem where we would get complacent," Lee said. "Part of it has been a lack of depth, and we also have a lot of new players."

Most of KWC's lineup wasn't at the school the last time the Panthers played Saint Joseph's. That was a bitter night for KWC, which fell 72-70 to the Pumas at the Sportscenter in the first round of last season's Midwest Regional of the NCAA Division II Tournament.

Chris Williams is the only Panther back who had a big role in that game. He scored 14 points, hitting four 3-pointers.

Phillip Collins is back as a junior for St. Joe's. Collins hit the baseline jumper over two KWC defenders to give St. Joe's the advantage with 2.3 seconds left in the regional game.

Collins is a 6-foot-3 guard who is averaging 12.9 points a game for St. Joe's. Dayvon Sloan is also back as the sophomore leading scorer (15.2). Sloan also had one of the more memorable nights in Sportscenter history last March, scoring 43 of his 45 points after halftime and in three overtimes of a 104-103 win over Quincy in the regional championship game.

The Panthers will also have to deal with Alumni Fieldhouse, a small, old gym in Rensselaer, Ind., that is one of the most difficult places to play in the GLVC.

"They are very good at home, and it's a small gym that's a tough place to play," Lee said. "If they're up 20 or down 20, they play the same way; they are very aggressive. They have the Sloan kid, who is one of the best shooters in our league, and they've got some good players around him."

Lee is curious to see how his team will respond to the quick turnaround.

"It's a long road trip, and we'll see how they respond," Lee said.

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