Kansas Wesleyan women's basketball picked up its tenth straight win knocking off the defending KCAC Champion Tabor College Bluejays 62-47 on Friday night at Mabee Arena.
The game was moved to Friday night to avoid the winter storm forecast to hit the area over the weekend which would have made travel very difficult on Saturday.
Inside the arena, the Coyotes controlled the game from start to finish, thanks in part to another outstanding defensive effort, holding Tabor to 30 percent shooting and their lowest scoring total of the season in regular season games.
KWU head coach Ryan Showman was proud of his team's efforts, despite showing a bit of fatigue in the fourth quarter due to the game change.
"I thought defensively we were really good. But I felt like we got a little tired in the fourth quarter," he said. "We had two practices yesterday before we found out the game was being moved. I thought our legs gave way there in the fourth, we fouled and put them on the line and they made some plays and got back in it."
Despite Tabor's push to start the fourth quarter, the Coyotes rallied and regained control of things for the win, snapping a three-game losing streak to the Bluejays.
"For us it was bend, don't break," Showman said. "I am really proud of the way we were able to win this one, to find a way to beat a good team."
Wesleyan head Tabor to just 15 first-half points on 5 of 22 shooting (22.7 percent).
Showman credits being able to disrupt Tabor's offensive sets to the first-half success.
"That was our game plan defensively, to take away their first few actions and make them have to create in the half court," he said. "They're very good at executing what they do and we thought if we could disrupt that a little bit, we thought we would have some success."
It took over a minute for either team to score as Hampton Williams opened things up with 8:46 left in the first. Tabor got on the board with 6:29 left on free throws by Kloe Bowin, but LaMyah Ricks answered back with a bucket to put the Coyotes up 4-2.
Wesleyan pushed the lead out to five at 14-9 in the first with 1:28 left on Catherine Bowman's bucket. The score would stick to the first quarter buzzer.
Williams and Angel Lee took over in the second quarter as the duo combined to score 14 of KWU's 17 points, nine from Williams, who also grabbed nine boards in the quarter, carrying a double-double into the half.
"Hampton played really well for us," Showman said. "I thought Paige (Chauncey) had some flashes, but it was tough night for her, but that's what makes us such a good team, we have to ask some people to step up and play some different roles, and they do it because they want to win."
Lee again took over the game in the fourth, scoring 11 points in the period and was clutch when Tabor made its run.
"Angel was really good for us too. When they cut it to 10 or 12, we went right back to her and she got an And-1," Showman said. "We went right back to her and she got into the lane. She was really good for us. Another person on another night finding a way, giving us a chance to win."
Wesleyan led 31-15 at the half and extended the lead out to 19 at 37-18 with 6:10 to go in the third on free throws by Bowman.
Tabor cut it to 14 at 39-25, but the Coyotes scored the last four points of the quarter to take a 43-25 lead at three-quarter time.
The Bluejays scored the first six points of the fourth, and cut the in half to nine points with 5:51 left on free throws by Alyvia Owens, but got no closer.
Five straight by Lee for the Coyotes pushed the lead back out to 14 at 52-38 with 5:03 to go.
A 3-pointer by Williams with 50 seconds left put the Coyotes up 17 before Tabor scored a final basket to make it the 15-point margin.
Lee led the Coyotes with 16 points, while Williams had 14 to go along with a career-high 17 rebounds in the game. Ricks had 11 for the Coyotes.