OWENSBORO, KY. – The Kentucky Wesleyan College men's basketball team came out of the Thanksgiving break with a 79-70 loss to Salem University on Friday. Zavon Godwin and Cameron Cartwright came off the bench to spark in the offense in the second half as the Panthers took a lead before the Tigers regained a two-possession lead and some insurance for the end of the game. The Kentucky Wesleyan College Thanksgiving Classic presented by Hampton Inn by Hilton continued tomorrow at the Sportscenter.
 
Wesleyan crashed the offensive glass throughout the contest, getting 16 chances at second chance points. However, the Tigers (4-1) shot 45% for the game and 52% in the second half to maintain a lead for most of the game.
 
Salem Head Coach Adam William rode his starters for a majority of the contest as all five played 31 minutes on the night. Deng Mayot connect on a three-point basket, his lone points from beyond the arc of the game, five minutes into the game to give the Panthers (1-2) a 15-10 lead. A few minutes later Erik Bell converted another three to return a five-point lead to Wesleyan, 18-13. The Tigers responded with a 13-2 run over the next three minutes to take a 26-20 lead midway through the first half.
 
The Panthers trailed by as many as nine points in the opening period, but went into the locker-room facing a 42-39 deficit after Cartwright buried a three-point basket. Cartwright picked-up right where he left off in the second half as he connected two more times from the perimeter in the first five minutes of the second half to tie the game at 50.
 
Trailing 58-57, Cartwright dropped-in another three-point bucket to give the Panthers the edge. Wesleyan trailed by as many as five before the Cartwright shot and finished the run with a 65-58 lead after Adam Goetz's three-point basket. The Panthers outscored the Tigers 12-0 in a three-minute span.
 
The advantage was erased after back-to-back three-point baskets, followed by a lay-up that extended the Tigers run to 8-0. Goetz stopped the rally a three-point basket with seven minutes left in the game. However, the Panthers only scored two more points the rest of the way as Salem converted late into the shot-clock to rebuild a two-possession lead into the final media timeout.
 
Wesleyan's bench scored 29 points compared to Salem's eight. Godwin sparked the offense with 15 points and six rebounds off the bench. Cartwright added 12 points and two assists. Mayot added 13 points and eight rebounds while Goetz finished with 11. Bell was an assist away from a double-double as added 10 points and nine assists. Mohamed Abu Arisha grabbed a team high 10 rebounds in 18 minutes.
 
The Panthers will host Indiana University Southeast on Saturday as the Kentucky Wesleyan College Thanksgiving Classic presented by Hampton Inn by Hilton continues with two more games starting at 1 PM. The Panthers will tip-off at the Sportscenter at 3:15PM.
 
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