Game Notes
Kentucky Wesleyan College played one of its best games of the season when it went to Northern Kentucky and won, 74-57, back on Jan. 26.
The Panthers will need a similar effort when they host NKU tonight at the Sportscenter. The Panthers need to regain more momentum after falling to No. 12 from No. 7 in the latest NABC Division II poll. NKU is No. 15.
“We defended really well, held them to 28 percent shooting in second half, and we shot 64 percent in second half,” KWC coach Todd Lee said. “There wasn't anything we did special, we just played really well.”
That was the first game KWC played without
Cardell McFarland, who has been sidelined with a foot injury since late January. The Panthers all picked up the slack in that game, and as Lee said, defended very well.
This is the beginning of a difficult 3-game stretch to finish the regular season. KWC (19-4, 11-4) travels to No. 1 Bellarmine on Saturday, before finishing the regular slate at home against the University of Southern Indiana next Thursday.
KWC is locked in a thee-way tie with Northern Kentucky (19-4, 11-4) and Southern Indiana for second place in the East Division. The top two teams in the East and West divisions earn first-round byes for the GLVC Tournament.
“It's really just one game at a time. All of them are important, but we've got to look at the first game right now,” Lee said. “Anytime two teams play that are evenly matched, it's hard to beat that team two times in a row. We played four times last year and three were in overtime.”
Expecting another tough game with NKU, and wanting the Panthers ready to go down the stretch run, Lee gave the Panthers Sunday and Monday off from practice after splitting last week's games with Lewis (loss) and Wisconsin-Parkside (win).
“We lifted on Monday and watched film,” Lee said. “We want the guys to be fresh for practice and this game. I think the guys understand the importance ofSFlbthese three games. These are our three big rivals, and we're all at the top of the country right now.”
KWC may have some different combinations in this game to try and get more baskets in transition. Lee said he wouldn't change the starting lineup, but is trying some different looks to push the ball more.
KWC guards
Kreig Oxley and
Brandon Johnson each scored in double figures in the Panthers' win at NKU.
The Panthers also need their top scorer,
Anthony Young, to be more assertive inside.
Young, a 6-foot-7, 255-pound senior, leads the GLVC in scoring at 20 points a game. Lee wants his versatile big man to be more active in the paint and get more rebounds. Young averages eight rebounds a game.
“Anthony has got to have that mind set of being a physical presence inside,” Lee said. “He needs to think 'I'm going to seal deep, make them foul me, attack the rim.' All of his stuff needs to be 17 feet and in, he needs to get to the foul line, when he does that we're a much different team. He needs to be in aggressive attack mode. He needs to draw fouls posting up. He's negating his strength by not being aggressive and not getting fouled.”
NKU has an assortment of 6-4 to 6-8 players that are interchangeable, and the Norse have experienced guards. Joe Van Hoose averages 12 points a game and is one of the better 3-point shooters in the conference.
Junior guard Ethan Faulkner has scored in double figures in seven straight games for NKU. Six Norse players average between nine and 10.6 points a game.
