Webb’s 26 Lifts Trojans Past No. 22 Indiana Wesleyan

UPLAND, Ind. – Anton Webb and Chaz Harvey combined for 33 of Taylor's 42 second-half points, with Webb finishing with a game-high 26 to lift the Trojans to a 79-76 victory over No. 22 Indiana Wesleyan on Wednesday inside Odle Arena.

The Trojans led throughout the majority of the night, using an early 12-0 spurt to double up the Wildcats at 20-10 with 11:19 to play in the opening half. TU leaned on the long ball to fuel the run, getting a go-ahead trey from Kobe Funderburk and back-to-back triples from Webb before Kaden Fuhrmann got fouled behind the line and sank all three attempts from the stripe.

IWU (11-5, 1-5 CL) closed to within a point with just over two minutes to play in the stanza, but Taylor again countered from distance, getting a three from Fuhrmann to spark a 10-2 stretch into the break.

TU headed to intermission with a 37-28 lead, having assisted on 11-of-14 field goals and converted on five-of-eight looks from three-point range. Fuhrmann led the way for Taylor with 10 points, while the Trojan defense held the powerful Wildcat lineup to a 34.5-percent clip from the field.

The IWU offense came alive right out of the break, scoring on its first three touches, but making no dent in the Taylor lead, as Webb and Harvey countered with three buckets to keep the spread at nine.

The Taylor lead eventually swelled to 14 midway through the second on a Harvey hoop for a 62-48 lead and again moments later on a dunk from Izaiah Day for a 64-50 lead with 9:38 left in the game.

The TU offense cooled down the stretch however, just as the Wildcats heated from the perimeter to narrow the margin. The Trojans mustered just three baskets over the final nine minutes, with all three coming in the paint from Webb.

Webb's final bucket of the contest came via an and-one conversion that gave Taylor a 73-69 lead with 2:14 to play.

Indiana Wesleyan continued its charge, eventually taking its first lead of the second half on an and-one of its own for a 74-73 lead at the 1:35 mark.

The two sides traded free throws over the next few possessions with a pair from Harvey and Webb pushing TU back on top by one with 38 ticks showing on the clock.

A pair of defensive rebounds from Harvey in the closing seconds and two more free throws from the junior guard helped Taylor secure the thrilling, 79-76, win over its cross-county rival.

Webb was a force all night, ending with 26 points, eight rebounds, two assists, a steal and one block in 29 minutes of work. Webb finished nine-of-12 from the field and scored 11 of TU's final 15 points to keep the Wildcats at bay.

Harvey was right behind with 18 points on six-of-nine shooting, while adding four rebounds, four assists and one steal. Harvey poured in 14 second-half points on three-of-four shooting and six free throws.

Fuhrmann joined Webb and Harvey in double figures with 14 points on five-of-eight shooting and Pete Combs joined Nate Paarlberg with seven points.

Taylor rebounded from its worst offensive performance of the season in a loss at Spring Arbor by shooting 61.7 percent from the field against the Indiana Wesleyan defense. TU shot 15-of-22 from two-point range over the final 20 minutes for a blistering 68.2-percent clip.

The precise shooting helped TU overcome an 18-2 deficit in second-chance points, and an 18-point deficit from beyond the arc in the second half, as IWU turned six offensive boards into 14 points in the half and knocked down six triples after the break.

Taylor (10-6, 3-3 CL) will host Goshen (5-11, 0-6 CL) on Saturday in a 3:00 pm start, following the women's game at 1:00 pm.