Box Score
It was two newcomers who helped lead Kentucky Wesleyan College to a hard-fought Great Midwest Athletic Conference road win over Central State on Saturday.
Freshman Ken-Jah Bosley scored a team-high 24 points and sophomore transfer Devin Langford added 15 as the Panthers came from behind to beat the Marauders, 82-76, in Wilberforce, Ohio, to earn their eighth win in nine games and second straight on the road.
It was a 12-2 run late in the second half that put KWC on top for good.
"We didn't play well. Let's not kid ourselves," coach Happy Osborne said. "We played all right the last five to six minutes."
Central State (8-6, 1-1 G-MAC) led for most of the game and went ahead by as many as 10 in the second half, but KWC (9-6, 4-0) was determined to come back.
The Panthers chipped away, hitting from the outside and getting to the free throw line. KWC was 39-of-45 at the free throw line compared to Central State's 8-of-19 clip.
A Donovan Johnson bucket at the 5:45 mark tied the game at 61-61 and then a three-point play by Bosley a minute later gave KWC a 64-63 lead. That was the first lead for the Panthers since leading 19-18 midway through the first half.
It was Bosley's three-point play that set off the decisive run, including dunks from Langford and Dawson, two free throws from Lucas Barker and a 3-pointer by Bosley.
Barker was 8-for-8 at the free throw line and Osborne couldn't give him enough credit following the win, particularly what he did defensively on Central State's leading scorer, LeDonte Body.
"I really liked that Lucas stepped to the line and went 8-for-8," Osborne said. "What needs to be forgotten here is how many times since I've been here, I've been told that Lucas Barker is not a defender. We finally put Lucas Barker on (Body)…he finished with 28 and when Lucas Barker was on him, he didn't have any. I give Lucas total credit for the job he did."
Body was a pest for KWC all game, added eight rebounds to his point total in 39 minutes.
But the Panthers answered the bell with the trio of Bosley, Langford and Dominique Dawson. Langford added seven rebounds as well to his point total and Dawson scored 13 points with eight rebounds.
"I thought Dominique (Dawson) was huge late," Osborne said. "I think Devin was good late. Those guys battled. If there's a better freshman in the G-MAC, I'll take Ken-Jah Bosley. Everybody else can have their pick, but I'll take Ken-Jah Bosley."
Osborne was filled with two emotions following the game. The first was that he was obviously happy to get a road win and remain undefeated in conference play. At the same time, he knows there's plenty to work on before KWC's game on Thursday against Davis & Elkins.
"We talked at halftime that we know what's at stake," Osborne said. "It's a chance for a huge road win. It's a chance for other things down the line. Every game really, really matters right now. We're not the team that I want to be yet. That'll come, I hope. We've just got to keep plugging. Did we win? Yes. Do we have a lot of work to do? Yes, yes, yes."
