SPRING ARBOR, Mich. – Brady Scholl poured in 26 points as No. 5 Indiana Wesleyan Men's Basketball rolled past Cornerstone, 83-66, at the CRL/WHAC Challenge on Saturday. The Wildcats' defense set the tone early, forcing 12 first-half turnovers and converting them into 20 points while building a 16-0 run that put the game in control. IWU shot 54.9 percent from the floor and dominated the paint, 40-22. Isaac Andrews added 18 points with four 3-pointers as the red and grey led wire to wire and improved to 2-0 on the season.
THE ESSENTIALS
- Location: Spring Arbor, Mich. | McDonald Athletic Center
- Records: IWU 2-0 | CU 1-1
- NAIA Top 25 Rankings: IWU – #5 | CU – Unranked
FIRST HALF
- Scholl came up with steals on Cornerstone's first two possessions, turning the first into a fast-break layup.
- After a Kayden Bird jumper made it 5-2, the Wildcats reeled off 16 straight points. Marcus Ankney and Millen McCartney each finished three-point plays, McCartney added a 3-pointer, and Chief Cameron's breakaway layup made it 18-2 at 12:52.
- The Golden Eagles found their stroke from deep with threes from Colin Heyboer, Bird and Titus Spencer, but Parker Hovey and Andrews answered to keep IWU ahead 23-11.
- Cornerstone later strung together an 8-0 run behind threes from Heyboer and Myles Steffen, trimming the deficit to 29-23 at 5:40.
- Jake Smith ended the spurt with a layup, and Andrews buried a 3-pointer off a McCartney steal to push the lead back to 34-25.
- Scholl scored IWU's final six points of the half, including a layup off his third steal and another with one second left, sending the Wildcats to the break up 44-31. He had 15 points in the half.
SECOND HALF
- The Golden Eagles opened the half with a push, as Levi Schultz scored on a three-point play and a putback before Bird's jumper off a steal cut it to 50-43 at 15:13.
- The IWU defense tightened from there, holding Cornerstone to one field goal over a span of nearly eight minutes.
- The red and grey took full advantage with a 15-2 run. Smith scored inside, Scholl converted a three-point play, Kevin Sacas made three free throws, and Andrews knocked down a pair of 3-pointers. The second three came after Sacas grabbed back-to-back offensive rebounds and made it 68-47 at 7:42, IWU's largest lead.
- Cornerstone scored nine of the next 11 points, two Brody Johnson layups off IWU turnovers among them, to pull within 72-59 at 4:49.
- Scholl answered with a layup from Smith and later a three-point play at 1:29, and Andrews added two free throws in between to make it 80-63.
- Matthew Brown capped the 83-66 win with a 3-pointer from Jaxon Salenbien in the final minute.
KEY WILDCATS
- Brady Scholl: 26 points, 11-17 FG, 9 rebounds, 3 steals
- Isaac Andrews: 18 points, 4-7 3FG, 4-4 FT, 3 assists
- Parker Hovey: 9 points, 4-4 FT, 3 rebounds, 2 assists
- Jake Smith: 7 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists
- Millen McCartney: 6 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists
TEAM COMPARISON
- Field Goals: IWU 28-51 (54.9%) | CU 23-57 (40.4%)
- 3-Pointers: IWU 7-19 (36.8%) | CU 9-26 (34.6%)
- Free Throws: IWU 20-30 (66.7%) | CU 11-13 (84.6%)
- Rebounds: IWU 38 (12 offensive) | CU 25 (9 offensive)
- Assists: IWU 18 | CU 16
- Turnovers: IWU 15 | CU 15
- Points Off Turnovers: IWU 20 | CU 15
- Second-Chance Points: IWU 11 | CU 10
- Points in the Paint: IWU 40 | CU 22
- Bench Points: IWU 20 | CU 21
NEXT TIME OUT
- The Wildcats will have their home opener in I Am Third Arena on Friday, November 6 at 7:00 p.m.
- Links for live video and stats are available at IWUWildcats.com.
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