BELLEVUE, Neb. - Kansas Wesleyan Men's Basketball bounced back from Friday night's loss in the season opener to grab a 70-63 win over Bellevue in the Chick-Fil-A Classic hosted at the Lozier Athletic Center on Saturday.
The Coyotes built a 12-point lead halfway through the first half on Thurbil Bile's steal and dunk with 10:30 left in the first. Another dunk by Bile with 7:23 left pushed the Coyote lead out to 16 at 34-18.
Caden Hale's bucket with 1:39 left in the first again gave the Coyotes a 16-point cushion at 45-29 before KWU took a 45-33 lead into the half.
Free throws by Bile with 7:19 left in the game pushed Wesleyan's lead out to 62-45, but a 15-8 run by Bellevue cut the difference to 68-60 with 45 seconds left.
Bile had 18 points to lead the Coyotes while Cory Kaplan had 16 and Hale had 15. Alex Littlejohn had 10 points and 13 rebounds for another double-double. KWU shot 46.3 percent from the field and was 15 of 17 at the line for 88.2 percent. Bile added seven rebounds as KWU outboarded Bellevue 33-28.
The Coyotes are back in action next weekend, hosting the Kansas Wesleyan Coyote Classic in Mabee Arena. KWU plays Morningside on Friday night, and Briar Cliff next Saturday.