PAINESVILLE, OH - Coming off two straight overtime losses, the Kentucky Wesleyan Men's Basketball team left nothing to chance on Saturday, taking down Lake Erie 73-61 in G-MAC action. Wesleyan held the Storm to just 18 points in the first half en-route to the 12 point victory. 

With the win the Panthers move to 10-8 (5-5 G-MAC) while the Storm fall to 8-5 (2-4 G-MAC). 

KWC jumped out to an 11-6 lead early with buckets from five different Panthers. After LEC cut to to 11-3, Edward Jones Jr. capped off a 6-0 Wesleyan run with a three to extend the lead to 17-9. The Panthers would push the lead to 11 a few minutes later off a three from Jordan Roland. Antonio Thomas gave Wesleyan it's final bucket of the half on a driving layup and Wesleyan led 30-18 after one.

Wesleyan jumped on the Storm early in the second, as Ben Sisson scored four straight points early to extend KWC's lead to 36-21 just two minutes into the half. A three pointer by Wyatt Battaile with 15 minutes left in the game gave Wesleyan a comfortable 16 point lead over the Storm. With LEC charging back to within 10 with 5:44 left to play, Sisson made a layup and Battaile hit two straight jumpers to put the game out of reach. The Panthers cruised to the finish line for the 73-61 win. 

Jordan Roland, Antonio Thomas, and Wyatt Battaile each dropped in 15 points for the Panthers. Battaile led the way with 11 rebounds and Thomas notched five assists. 

For the game, Wesleyan shot 29-60 (48.3%) and 3-15 (20%) from behind the arc. Lake Erie shot 24-60 (40%) and 7-22 (31.8%) from three. Wesleyan hit six more free throws than the Storm, going 12-15 from the charity stripe, compared to 6-12 for LEC. 

The Panthers head to Findlay next Thursday for a rematch with the Oilers. Tipoff is set for 7:45 p.m. CT. 

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