Photo by Micah Gilbert
McPherson, Kan. – The McPherson College men's basketball team picked up right where they left off before the holiday break, opening up 2020 with an 80-65 win over Kansas Wesleyan University.
It was one of the best overall performances of the year for the Bulldogs. Offensively, they shot the ball extremely well from all over the floor, going 25 of 56 overall, including 13-30 from behind the arc, and 17 of 18 from the free throw line. Defensively, they held the Coyotes to just 37% shooting from the field, and 19% from deep. They also held KWU's two leading scorers to a combined 16 points.
In the first half it was the three point shot (9 of 17) that helped Mac to a 16 point halftime lead 43-27. In the second half the Bulldogs cooled down from the field, but went 15 of 16 from the charity stripe to maintain their advantage over the Coyotes.
The Bulldogs had two players score in double figures, led by Travon Shelvin (So. Pearland, Texas), who recorded a new career high, and led all scorers in the game with 27 points. Joining Shelvin in double figures was Fred Watts (Jr. Channelview, Texas), with 17. Kemryn Jenkins (Jr. Eminence, Ky) and Delvon Hightower (Sr. Bakersfield, Calif.), just missed out on double figures, scoring 9 and 8 points respectively.
"That was one of the best defensive performances that we have had this year," said Bulldog head coach T.J. Eskildsen. "I was really pleased with the energy and focus our guys came out with after the Christmas break. Kansas Wesleyan is a great team and I thought we did a good job of disrupting their flow offensively. Obviously I'm extremely proud of Travon stepping up in his first start of the season and giving us a great performance. Now we need to turn our attention to another very good opponent in Avila next week."
The win is the third in a row for the Bulldogs and puts them at 11-5 overall and 6-4 in conference play. They will look to extend their winning streak on Wednesday when they travel to Kansas City, Missouri to tangle with the Avila University Eagles in an 8 p.m. match-up.
MAC (80) – Shelvin (27), Watts (17), Jenkins (9), Hightower (8), Paige (7), Maccoy (5), Magot (4), Munsen (3).
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