Box Score
SOMERS, Wis. - The postseason run for eighth-seeded Kentucky Wesleyan came to an end in the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Midwest Regional on Saturday against No. 1 Wisconsin-Parkside, 74-65.
The Great Midwest Athletic Conference regular season and tournament champion Panthers led by as many as nine in the first half, but the Rangers clawed their way back and held on at the end.
With three No. 1 seeds in the 64-team men's bracket having been eliminated already, KWC was hoping to pull off the upset in UWP's own DeSimone Gymnasium.
The G-MAC's first-ever men's basketball national tournament appearance validated the Panthers belonged and in terms of seeding, gave their opponent/regional host all it could handle.
KWC entered as the ninth-ranked team in the country and UWP had a No. 14 national ranking, respectively. The Panthers ended their 2015-16 season with a 27-4 overall record.
The Panthers took advantage of their athleticism early on and eased out to a 19-10 lead in the first half, capitalizing on offensive rebound putbacks by Jordan Jacks and slashing scoring moves by Devin Langford.
But the Rangers hit three consecutive triples, including back-to-back shots by Alexander Brown and one by Andy Mazurczak in the midst of an 11-2 run to tie things up at 21 with just over six minutes in the first half.
Mazurczak would give the Rangers their first lead of the game at 26-25 with a driving layup.
Brown finished with a game-high 22 points while Mazurczak finished with 19. Kendale McCullum added 17.
KWC's Ken-Jah Bosley made things all square again at 31-31 with a long three with a minute before the break.
Bruising big man Marcus Fuggins helped keep things close in the second half, swatting a shot and making a layup on the other end for another tie with 11:30 left in regulation.
Fouls mounted for Kentucky Wesleyan in the second half as Langford fouled out and UWP made a total of 25 shots at the charity stripe.
Wisconsin-Parkside capitalized on being in the bonus with over 11 minutes to go and eventually made enough free throws down the stretch to build a 10-point edge late.
Jacks led Kentucky Wesleyan with his 15th double-double resulting in 14 points and 13 rebounds. C.J. Blackwell was also in double figures with 12 points.