UPLAND, Ind. -- No. 9-ranked Indiana Wesleyan University men's basketball withstood a last second barrage of shots to survive host Taylor (Ind.) University by a 61-60 margin on Saturday afternoon in Upland, Indiana.

Taylor (13-9, 3-6 MCC) had the last possession of the game and on the initial drive to the basket by Casey Coons the shot attempt would end up in the corner. Drew Tower chased the ball down for Taylor and had a hurried, but open look at the basket. His shot went long and two Taylor tips would only hit rim as the horn sounded and Indiana Wesleyan escaped Taylor in the second classic of the season.

In the teams' first meeting of the season, Indiana Wesleyan won 67-66 when sophomore forward Patrick Hopkins tipped in a missed shot by junior guard Derrick Troyer with less than two seconds to play.

Indiana Wesleyan (20-3, 9-0 MCC) gained the final lead of the game with 54 seconds left. Trailing 60-59 and Taylor in possession, IWU freshman guard Jordan Weidner picked off a pass and drove to the basket. He was fouled and hit both free throws for a 61-60 lead.

After a defensive stand for the Wildcats, Weidner was fouled again with 25 seconds remaining. This time Weidner missed both free throws to set up the final attempt for the Trojans.

Weidner and Hopkins completely took over the game for Indiana Wesleyan on Saturday. The usual balanced attack for Indiana Wesleyan turned into a two man show at Taylor as Weidner and Hopkins scored 77-percent of the Indiana Wesleyan points in the victory, including the final 19 points over the last 10 minutes of the game.

Hopkins finished two points shy of tying his career-high with 26 points on Saturday. He was 7-of-12 from the floor and 12-of-14 from the foul line. He also pulled down a game-high eight rebounds. Weidner added 21 points in his first collegiate start, playing all 40 minutes. The freshman was the only Wildcat to connect from 3-point range as he was 3-of-5 from deep.

Indiana Wesleyan played without starting guard Derrick Troyer. Despite the loss of Troyer on Saturday, IWU committed just nine turnovers in the game.

The win improves the program record win streak to 17 in a row for Indiana Wesleyan. Eleven of those wins have come by six points or less, including a pair of one point wins over Grant County rival Taylor. The victory is also the 20th this season for Indiana Wesleyan. IWU has reached the 20-win plateau seven times in program history and is the fifth straight time under head coach Greg Tonagel.

Indiana Wesleyan will return to Luckey Arena for their next two games. IWU hosts Goshen (Ind.) College at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, January 25 and then will welcome Bethel (Ind.) College in a ?White Out' game at 3 p.m. on Saturday, January 29.

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