Jordan Roland scored 20 points to lead the Kentucky Wesleyan College men’s basketball team, but five players in double figures were too much for the Panthers to overcome in a 78-59 loss to Lake Erie on Saturday at the Osborne Center in Painesville, Ohio.
With the loss, the Panthers dropped to 9-11 overall, 5-7 in G-MAC play and 1-9 away from Owensboro.
A layup from Jacob Plantz, who scored a game-high 24 points for the Storm (11-8, 8-5 G-MAC), sparked an 11-4 first-half scoring run that gave Lake Erie a 22-13 lead with 10:49 left in the first half. However, a layup by Roland capped off an 8-0 spurt that drew KWC within a point less than three minutes later.
From there, though, the Storm scored 19 of the game’s next 29 points to build a 41-31 lead at intermission.
Roland knocked down consecutive 3s that tied the game at 43-43 with 16:13 left to play, but the Panthers could never take the lead. The Storm reeled off 10 straight points and were able to keep KWC at bay from there.
Wesleyan’s Eddie Jones Jr. sank a shot from beyond the arc that drew his team to within 65-58 at 4:17, but Lake Erie closed the game on a 13-1 run to seal the victory.
Jones finished with 12 points and six rebounds for Wesleyan, while Ben Sisson added seven points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
The Panthers shot only 33.3% from the field, including 6-of-23 from long range (26.1%), and made 7-of-10 free throws (70%) with 12 turnovers leading to 18 points. KWC won the rebounding battle, 42-34, and held a 12-5 edge in second-chance scoring.
Jordan Burton scored 19 points and grabbed six rebounds for Lake Erie, while Manning posted 11 points and PJ Jones and Kevin Peterson tallied 10 points apiece. The Storm shot 50.9% from the floor, with a 8-of-21 mark from 3-point range (38.1%), and converted 14-of-20 foul shots (70%) with 11 turnovers leading to 12 points.
Lake Erie, which never trailed, also finished with the edge in fast-break scoring (16-2) and bench production (34-10).
Wesleyan is set to play again Tuesday when the Panthers travel to Nashville for a conference matchup at Trevecca Nazarene.
KENTUCKY WESLEYAN 31 28 — 59
Kentucky Wesleyan (59) — Roland 20, Jones 12, Sisson 7, Boyd 6, Mitchell 6, Miles 4, Thomas 4.
Lake Erie (78) — Plantz 23, Burton 19, Manning 11, Jones 10, Peterson 10, Piks 5.
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