LINCOLN, Neb. - Nebraska Wesleyan settled in after a shaky start and turned in a composed, physical performance to knock off the University of Dallas 79–70 on Friday night inside Snyder Arena. The win pushes the Prairie Wolves back to .500 at 3–3 and extends the program's home-opener streak to ten straight seasons.
How It Happened
First Half
Dallas came out firing, burying five threes in the opening four minutes to race ahead 17–8 and force NWU onto its heels. Nebraska Wesleyan steadied itself through its defense, flipping the momentum once the bench unit entered. Christian Winn's steal-and-score stretch, a tip-in from Devin Holmon, and Payson Gillespie's transition three tied the game at 20–20 as NWU's tempo and physicality began to take over.
From there, the Prairie Wolves' guards dictated the pace. Holmon gave NWU its first lead at 22–20, and Seth Newton, Nick Howard and Jared Townsley combined for 22 first-half points. Gillespie's late layup and Townsley's free throws sent NWU into halftime up 38–36 despite Dallas shooting 50% from the floor and hitting seven threes.
Second Half
Once the Prairie Wolves found rhythm out of the break, the game flipped decisively.
Newton opened the half with back-to-back threes to spark an 12–2 run, ballooning NWU's lead to 50–38. From there, the Prairie Wolves' defensive length in the zone completely stalled the Crusaders' perimeter rhythm. Dallas shot just 27.3% in the second half, including 4-for-15 from deep.
NWU's advantage swelled to 65–46 with 11:03 remaining when Neal Mosser cleaned up a miss for a putback. The Crusaders made one last push behind their backcourt, trimming it to 75–68 in the final two minutes, but Gillespie's slicing layup through traffic sealed the night as NWU closed things out with composure.
Inside the Box Score
Game Notes
- Ten straight home-opener wins (last loss in 2015–16).
- Season-best 50.8% shooting from the field.
- Held Dallas to 27.3% shooting in the second half.
- Newton posted his first game this season in double figures and a season-high six assists.
- Howard recorded the first perfect 8+ free throw night of his career.
- Winn has shot 50% or better in back-to-back games.
Up Next
NWU hosts Crown College Saturday at 5 p.m. on Day Two of the Snyder Classic.
