Game notes
The Kentucky Wesleyan College men's basketball team has a chance to knock off the top team in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference and also avenge last year's season series when the Panthers host Alderson Broaddus on Saturday at the Sportscenter.
KWC (14-5, 4-2 in G-MAC) lost both regular-season matchups to the Battlers last season before falling to them a third time in the conference tournament championship game. The Panthers, currently sitting third in the conference standings, could put themselves in contention for the G-MAC's top spot with a win over Alderson Broaddus and a Central State loss to Ohio Valley on Saturday.
Though holdovers from last year's squad, as well as Panthers supporters, may seek revenge after last year's results, KWC second-year coach
Happy Osborne insisted that Saturday's game is more about the home team powering through its recent struggles than anything else.
"We've got nine guys that weren't part of that (last year)," Osborne said. "It's not them as much as it's us. I want more out of us. More juice, more work, just harder. It's a January lull, I think, and teams sometimes go through that. We started December 28, and I guess we've had two days off.
"If we can get through (Saturday), we've got Oakland City next Wednesday, then I'm giving them three (days off) to freshen up for February. We've just got to grind through the bumps, and we've got to find a way to play better."
The Battlers (12-5, 5-1) are led by 6-foot-2 guard Malcolm Tatum, who averages 14.1 points, 3.9 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game. Other starters include 6-5 forward Richard Lemon (10.6 points, 6.3 rebounds), 6-3 guard Ali Bilal (9.9 points, 5.1 rebounds), 6-7 forward Tobias Dowdell (7.6 points, 4.9 rebounds) and 6-3 Devin Colston (5.5 points).
"We've got to go out there, and we've got to take it," Osborne said. "They're not going to give it to you. We've got to do a great job guarding penetration from Tatum.
"We're doing everything we can. We've got to hunker down, and we've got to get it done."
Ken-Jah Bosley leads the Panthers in scoring with 17.8 points per game, while other starters include C.J. Blackwell (12.4 points, 5.1 rebounds), Devin Langford (10.3 points), Marcus Fillyaw (7.4 points, 4.4 assists) and Zay Henderson (3.6 points, 2.6 rebounds), who is coming off of a double-double effort with 10 points and 10 rebounds against Davis & Elkins.
"We've got to play with a little bit more energy," Osborne said. "There were times (against Davis & Elkins) when it was really, really positive, but we've got to stay with that. Our Hillsdale effort, our Quincy effort, even our Grand Valley effort — I think it's good enough to get it done. We've got to get back to that."
The KWC women's squad will face Alderson Broaddus at 1 p.m., and KWC is offering free admission for the doubleheader to fans who bring a canned good or $1 to donate to the Street Relief homeless program. Five local agencies — the Daniel Pitino Shelter, the Boulware Center, St. Benedict's, Oasis and Owensboro Regional Recovery — will divide the proceeds.
"We could really, really use a great crowd," Osborne said. "It would be uplifting to our kids. School's back in session, and I think that helps. It's for a good cause. Everybody's in free. (Athletic director) Jim (Askins) was good enough to do that, and our school's giving to the Street Relief program. Honestly, that's more important than a ball game, but we've got to go out there and get it done."
