WICHITA, Kan.- The No. 2-seeded and No. 16-ranked Falcons secured their place in the KCAC Tournament Championship game with an 83-76 victory over the No. 6-seeded Evangel Valor on Saturday night (Feb. 28). With the win, the Falcons have now claimed nine consecutive victories and advance to the KCAC Tournament Championship for the first time since the 2014-15 season.
Friends opened the game with an explosive start, racing out to an 11-0 run fueled by Cahlese Lee's back-to-back three-pointers. The Falcons maintained their offensive momentum and extended their lead to as many as 15 points, 34-19, with six minutes remaining in the half. Evangel chipped away at the deficit late, trimming the lead to single digits as Friends entered halftime leading Evangel, 46-38.
Lee led the Falcons in the first half with 15 points, knocking down three three-pointers. Randy Woolf, Jr. added 12 points, while Devin Davis facilitated the offense with five first-half assists.
Friends maintained its lead through the opening stretch of the second half, but Evangel quickly chipped away at the deficit, cutting the margin to a single possession just two minutes into the period. With under 10 minutes to play, Evangel seized its first lead of the game at 62-61 and briefly extended it to 64-62.
The Falcons responded in dramatic fashion. Woolf Jr. delivered a pivotal four-point play with less than eight minutes remaining, swinging the momentum back in Friends' favor and giving the Falcons a 66-64 advantage. From there, Friends regained control and worked to hold off Evangel's late surge.
With under a minute left in regulation, the Valor pulled within one possession at 78-75. Friends remained composed at the free-throw line, as Woolf Jr. and Owen Evans each converted key attempts in the final minute to secure the win. Despite Evangel's late push, the Falcons closed strong to earn the 83-76 victory.
Cahlese Lee finished with a game-high 25 points, including five three-pointers, while adding five rebounds, two assists, and a steal. He was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line. Randy Woolf, Jr. contributed 20 points on an efficient 6-of-12 shooting performance, went 6-for-6 from the free-throw line, and recorded six assists, six rebounds, and a steal. Al Emerllahu rounded out the double-figure scorers with 13 points, connecting on three of five attempts from three-point range, while adding six rebounds and two steals.
Ringo Deng provided defensive energy with two steals and chipped in seven points, four assists, and three rebounds. Devin Davis also added six rebounds and five assists off the bench.
As a team, Friends shot 43.5 percent from the field (27-of-62), 40.6 percent from three-point range (13-of-32), and 80 percent from the free-throw line (16-of-20), while finishing with 19 assists. Defensively, the Falcons limited Evangel to 28.6 percent shooting from beyond the arc in the second half after the Valor shot 40 percent from three in the first half. Friends forced 12 turnovers, converting them into 12 points, and totaled seven steals.
Now 25-5 on the season, the Falcons will play for the KCAC Tournament Championship on Tuesday (Mar. 3), traveling to Bartlesville, Oklahoma, to face top-seeded Oklahoma Wesleyan at 7:00 p.m.
