WICHITA, Kan. – The Tabor College Bluejays slipped by the Friends University Falcons 63-59 tonight (Jan. 3) in KCAC action inside the Garvey Center.

With the game tied for the fifth time at 56-56, two free throws by Jake Proctor with 2:12 remaining gave the Bluejays a lead they wouldn't relinquish the rest of the way.

The Falcons still had a chance until the very end, but a potential game-tying attempt by KJ Spiller went just in and out with five seconds left and Kalep Crane hit two free throws to put it away for the Bluejays.

Friends got off to a quick start, scoring the game's first six points and building a 16-4 edge behind consecutive threes by Al Emerllahu and Deron McDaniel at the 13:07 mark of the opening half.

A three by Proctor and five points from Jaiden Miller helped bring Tabor within two, but the Falcons quickly stretched the lead back to seven at 25-18 with 4:48 left.  

The Bluejays then went on a 9-1 run to take their first lead of the night before Steele Chapman corralled an offensive rebound ahead of the buzzer and proceeded to hit two free throws to put the Falcons back on top 28-27 at the break.

The second half was played close, with the largest lead after halftime occurring when Spiller scored eight points to power a 10-1 spurt and give the Falcons a 51-44 edge with 7:18 left.

Tabor continued the back-and-forth action behind seven points from Thatcher McClure that sparked a 12-3 burst for a two-point lead with 3:19 remaining.

Spiller led the Falcons (4-7, 2-5 KCAC) with 18 points and also pulled down seven rebounds. Emerllahu added 12 points and a team-high 10 rebounds, while McDaniel chipped in with 10 points. Chapman wound up with nine points and a career-high eight boards.

The Bluejays (5-8, 2-5 KCAC) were led by a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds from McClure, with Holcombe scoring 12.

Tabor outrebounded Friends 42-38 overall and outscored the Falcons 15-9 in second chance points, but it was Friends with a 30-14 edge in points in the paint.

The Falcons shot 36.7 percent from the field in each half, while the Bluejays warmed up to shoot 44.4 percent (12-of-27) in the second half following a 31 percent (9-of-29) clip in the opening stanza.

Next up, the Falcons are back at the Garvey for a 3 pm tip-off Saturday (Jan. 6) vs. York University.