Kentucky Wesleyan College Athletics

With five practices in the last three days aimed at shoring up their deficiencies, Osborne said his team's defense will have to be better.

"We've worked a lot on guarding the drive," the third-year KWC coach said. "We're scoring 85 points per game. You look at our losses, our losses come from our lack of defense. The thing we've got to do a better job of is communicating. We've got to be together. Talking on defense is huge, and our rotations have got to be better.

"Every game we play, Kentucky Wesleyan is only as good as Kentucky Wesleyan's defense."

With plenty of firepower on offense, the Panthers (9-2) give up around 71 points per game on 42-percent shooting. Against Northwood, KWC surrendered 53 points in the first half, as the Timberwolves shot 54 percent from the field and made 14-of-26 (54 percent) from long range for the game.

Facing a struggling Brevard team that runs a Princeton-style offense and likes to shoot from the outside, Osborne said shutting down the 3-point attack will be a key emphasis for his squad.

"When you're playing against an offense like that, you're more susceptible to the drive and backdoor cuts," he said. "I'm willing to give up a few backdoors as long as we don't give up the 3."

The Tornados (2-8) score around 73 points per game on 44-percent shooting and are led by junior guard Demarcus Threatt's 20.9 points per outing. Other expected starters include senior guard Miles Leathers (17.5 points, 6.6 rebounds), senior center Alex Moe (11.9 points, 7.1 rebounds), junior forward Omar El Diraoui (6.8 points) and sophomore guard Stevie Williams (5.3 points).

"They run the same offense as Northwood," Osborne said. "We've got to prove that we can guard that — we've got to guard the drive, and we've got to guard the 3. They can all shoot. Their center (Moe) is a good 3-point shooter, too."

KWC, which converts on 50 percent of its shots from the field and 40 percent from long range, is led by junior guard Ken-Jah Bosley's 18.6 points per game. Other expected starters are senior forward Devin Langford (15.8 points, 70-percent shooting), junior guard Jordan Jacks (14.3 points, 8.5 rebounds), senior guard Marcus Fillyaw (7.1 points, 3.7 assists) and senior center Jermaine Morgan (4.9 points, 5.3 rebounds).

Meanwhile, the Panthers will still be without senior center Marcus Fuggins, who is out until January with a shin injury.

"Until we get him back, I think every day is a struggle," Osborne said of the 6-foot-9, 260-pounder's importance. "It's always nice to have the biggest guy on the floor available. We've won without him and we can win without him, but we need him back."

However, Osborne added, he's got faith in his team as the Panthers start a three-game homestand before the beginning of conference play on Jan. 9.

"(This stretch) is really important, especially coming off of a loss," he said. "How we play after that will be important, including our ability to bounce back."