Trojans Fall Late in Contested Clash with No. 3 IWU
UPLAND, Ind. – Taylor led throughout much of the evening in a thrilling rivalry game with No. 3 Indiana Wesleyan, but the Wildcats found their stride deep into the affair to come away with a 79-72 decision inside Odle Arena.
No team led for more than eight points at any point in the game, with the majority of the action coming with the teams being separated on the scoreboard by one or two scores.
The Trojans were up for the test, bolting to a 10-3 lead with five fast points from Aaron Hahn and again held seven point leads at 18-11 and 23-16 before an 11-0 spurt from the guests put TU in a 31-26 deficit.
Jason Hubbard ended the streak with a hoop and scored nine of Taylor’s final 11 points of the half, including a three-pointer on TU’s final chance of the half to send the Trojans to the break with a 37-34 advantage.
Taylor sank 16-of-28 looks in the opening 20 minutes of action, beating IWU (25-4, 16-1 CL) on the glass by three, outscoring the guests by eight in the paint and getting 15 points on seven-of-eight shooting from its bench.
Hubbard led the way with 11 points, nine rebounds, four assists, one block and one steal in a busy first half, while Grant Niehaus provided a spark off the bench with seven points without a missed shot.
After being beaten in the post over the opening half, Indiana Wesleyan began to impose its will on the interior following the intermission. IWU shot 59.3 percent after the break with 14 makes in 22 looks from two-point range and posted a plus-14 advantage in paint points during the final 20 minutes to slowly turn the game in its favor.
Despite the interior advantage by the Wildcats, Taylor held serve and protected the lead for all but 22 seconds of the second half until a bucket at the 5:44 mark brought IWU even at 59-59.
Kaden Fuhrmann countered with a hoop on the ensuing possession but the game’s next eight points went to Indiana Wesleyan and the gap widened to an eight-point Wildcat lead with just under two minutes remaining.
Taylor closed with a three from Hahn and two treys from Fuhrmann to battle back to within 75-72 with 19 seconds showing on the clock but had to resort to fouling and IWU sealed its victory at the line with four makes in as many tries in the final moments.
Both sides shot the ball well, with Taylor closing at 45.0 percent and Indiana Wesleyan finishing at 50.0 percent. TU drilled 11 triples in 25 looks, beat IWU on the glass by three and assisted on 16-of-27 field goals.
Hubbard led the way once again with a 22-point, 13-rebound, four-assist effort, while also adding one block and one steal. Fuhrmann followed with 21 points, eight boards and two steals, with five three-pointers in nine tries. Hahn added 10 points and Niehaus finished with eight points and five rebounds.
Taylor (9-19, 5-12 CL) will close its regular season on Saturday at 3:00 pm against No. 15 Saint Francis (22-7, 12-5 CL), before opening Crossroads League Tournament play on Wednesday, February 23.
Recent Comments