MISHAWAKA, Ind. - No. 3 Indiana Wesleyan men's basketball were on the road on Wednesday night for their first game back from after Thanksgiving against No. 22 Bethel. The Wildcats had a one-point lead with 6:46 left in the game, but a season-high 21 turnovers were too much to overcome as IWU dropped their third-straight game in a 97-89 loss to the Pilots. This marks the first 0-3 start in Crossroads League play in the Greg Tonagel era.

 

THE ESSENTIALS

• Location: Mishawaka, Ind. | Gates Gymnasium
• Records: IWU: 6-3, 0-3 CRL | BU: 9-1, 3-0 CR
• NAIA Top-25 Rankings: IWU - #13 | BU – #22

WHAT HAPPENED

• Indiana Wesleyan came out on fire, knocking down 6-9 from deep for a 30-19 lead through the opening ten minutes of play.
• The Pilots used a 7-0 and an 8-0 run to battle back and take a 45-44 lead at halftime.
• The Wildcats trailed by as many as 12 to begin the second half, but cut the deficit to 69-63 off a 9-3 run with 10:51 left in the game.
• After retaking the lead with 6:46 left, Bethel went on a 23-14 run to end the game.

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• 40: Griffin Kliewer scored a career high 40 points. He has scored 40, 21, and 33 points in his last three games on the road against Bethel.
• 21: IWU turned the ball over a season-high 21 times.
• 9: The Wildcats only scored 9 bench points, with only eight players seeing minutes.
• 7: Kliewer's 7 made three-pointers are a new season-high for IWU.
• 2: Caedmon Bontrager recorded his second double-double of the season.

KEY WILDCATS

• Griffin Kliewer: 40 points, 7-11 3FG, 5 rebounds, 3 assists
• Caedmon Bontrager: 13 points, 12 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 assists
• Marcus Ankney: 11 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists
• DJ Moore: 10 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds

NEXT TIME OUT

• The Wildcats will look to bouce back as they return home on Saturday to play Spring Arbor at 6:00 p.m.
• Links for tickets, video, and stats will be available at IWUWildcats.com.

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