HILLSBORO – An 18-2 run by the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes turned a 7-6 Tabor College lead into a 24-9 KWU advantage and set the stage as the Coyotes rolled to an 85-57 win on Saturday night inside the Tabor College Gym.
It's the fourth straight winner for the Coyotes, and improves Wesleyan's record to 10-1 overall, 5-1 in the KCAC; while Tabor fell to 3-6 overall, 1-5 in the KCAC.
Tabor took its 7-6 lead with 15:06 to go on a pair of free throws by Cedric Armstrong, but the Coyotes regained the lead thanks to four straight points by leading scorer Cory Kaplan (SO/Merritt Island, Fla.) to give KWU a 10-7 lead with 14:37 left.
A pair of Jun Murdock (SO/Wichita, Kan.) triples and another by Izaiah Hale (FR/Wichita, Kan.) capped the run with 10:16 left in the opening half, giving the Coyotes a 24-9 cushion.
Tabor got back within nine with 4:49 left in the half before seven straight from the Coyotes capped by Murdock's bucket with 3:26 left, gave KWU a 39-23 lead. AJ Range (SR/Junction City, Kan.) would score at the intermission horn to give Wesleyan a 43-26 lead into break.
KWU led 54-33 after Kaplan's bucket with 15 minutes left, but a little run by Tabor made it a 15-point game with 13:45 to go.
Tabor got as close as 14 but back to back triples from Marcel Dean (SO/Tucson, Ariz.), and another Dean long-ranger with 8:32 left put the Coyotes up 23 points at 70-47.
The Bluejays got to 70-54 with 7:25 left, but a 10-0 run from the Coyotes, capped by five straight from Kaplan, made it 80-54 with 2:43 to go.
Kaplan's 25 led all scorers and paced four double digit scorers for KWU as Dean had 11 and Easton Hunter (FR/Colwich, Kan.) and Murdock had 10 each. KWU was 23 of 69 from the field for 46 percent. AJ Range led the rebounders with 11, while Alex Littlejohn (FR/Newton, Kan.) had seven. KWU outrebounded Tabor 43-37.
KWU has three games remaining before the semester break. KWU hosts Saint Mary at 8 p.m. on Wednesday at Mabee Arena, then heads on the road next Saturday at Columbia and then closes things out on next Monday at Avila.