Up by as many as 14 in the second half, Kentucky Wesleyan saw their lead dwindle to just three before two big free throws by Antonio Thomas and a clutch layup by Wyatt Battaile put the game away. This win snaps a five-game skid for KWC.
With the win KWC moves to 11-13 (6-10) while ODU falls to 6-16 (4-11 G-MAC). Both teams struggled shooting in the first half, combing to shoot just 29.1% from the field in the frame. Despite the poor shooting, KWC jumped out to a quick 10-2 lead, capped off by a strong layup from JoMel Boyd.
Jordan Roland hit a three to make it 20-12 with 3:24 left in the half, but ODU closed strong and KWC led just 21-18 heading into the locker rooms. The teams traded buckets at the beginning of the second half before a Battaile jumper sparked a 9-0 run that saw Wesleyan extend their lead to 13 eight minutes into the half. Right when Wesleyan thought they were going to pull away for good, Ohio Dominican used a 13-2 run to cut the KWC lead to 49-46 with five minutes to go in the game.
Not fazed by the attempted comeback, Thomas and Battaile scored nine of Wesleyan’s final 11 points of the game and closed out ODU for good. Roland led the way with 14 points, while Thomas and Battaile each had 12. Sasha Sukhanov dominated the glass with 11 boards, while Ben Sisson and Jamel Wilson each tallied three assists.
Wesleyan shot 23-55 (41.8%) from the field and 3-16 (18.8%) from three. ODU shot 19-57 (33.3%) from the field and 8-28 (28.6%) from behind the arc. Points in the paint were the difference, as KWC led 32-18 in that category.
Kentucky Wesleyan will be back at home on Thursday when they host the Tiffin Dragons. Tip-off is set for 7:45 p.m.
