FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Hot shooting Indiana Wesleyan University men’s basketball defeated Morningside (Iowa) 95-86 today at the Cruizin’ Classic in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The win comes a day after No. 7-ranked Indiana Wesleyan lost a tough 85-81 contest to No. 15-ranked Midland (Neb.) in the first game of the classic. Both Morningside (8-5) and Midland are from the GPAC conference.

“I love the way they responded,” said Indiana Wesleyan head coach Greg Tonagel. “They came in with a chip on their shoulder. We were ready to do battle as a team today.”

The Wildcats (11-3) shot 60-percent or better from all three shooting statistics today. The team finished with a 64.2-percent (34 of 53) field goal percentage, a 60.0-percent (15 of 25) 3-point field goal percentage, and a 66.7-percent (12 of 18) effort from the foul line. The 15 3-point baskets was one shy of the program record.

“When you make 15 3-pointers it really changes the complexion of everything,” said Tonagel. “It was good to see us shoot well from there today.”

Leading the way from distance was DJ Bettinger. He nailed a team-leading six 3-pointers and finished with 20 points in the game. Jordan Weidner scored a team-best 21 points while RJ Mahurin added 16 points and Lane Mahurin and Zac Vandewater each scored 14 points.

Despite scoring 53 points in the opening half, Indiana Wesleyan only led Morningside by three points. But defensively Indiana Wesleyan stepped it up in the second half and limited inside opportunities for Morningside as they could only score 36 points in the second half.

“I thought we shot very the ball well today,” added Tonagel. “And I also thought we defended a bit better, especially in the second half. We made enough plays defensively in the second half but we still need to get to more loose balls.”

Indiana Wesleyan will not play again for nine days when IWU hosts Indiana Kokomo on Saturday, December 28 in Luckey Arena. The game is scheduled to start at 3 p.m.