Avila Kicks off 2024 against KCAC Contenders OKWU

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Avila men's basketball had to face one of its toughest opponents of the season in their first game of the new year on Wednesday night in Mabee Fieldhouse, and NAIA No. 8 Oklahoma Wesleyan (12-1, 6-1 KCAC) lived up to the billing, pulling away from Avila (2-7, 1-6 KCAC) 77-53 in both teams' first game in 2024.

For a program that is known for rotating in a ton of players, this feels like a very different OKWU team than the dominant one of recent years, but the Eagles still have a ton of frontline talent and a very deep rotation of developing players. The Avila Eagles aren't yet as well-oiled as their Eagle counterparts from Oklahoma, but they have similar strong depth (both teams played 13 guys) and an obvious desire to learn and compete as they officially enter the second half of year one under head coach Tyler Bredehoeft.

Avila has had its share of tough games against Oklahoma Wesleyan – and so has just about every other team in the KCAC – since the two Eagle teams have been conference opponents, but this time around, Avila really kept pace with OKWU early. Avila tied the game twice and had multiple chances to take the lead in the early stages, but once Oklahoma Wesleyan was finally able to establish its collective footing, the visiting Eagles ultimately were able to take off.

Avila won the rebounding battle by 11, but Oklahoma Wesleyan took much better care of the ball and shot it decidedly better as well, close to 52% accuracy from the field. Well-established center Jaden Lietzke led all players with 17 points, anchored by an uncharacteristically efficient 9-of-14 shooting day from the foul line, while point guard DJ Talton scored eight points with seven assists and five steals. Avila's three leading scorers all came off the bench in another balanced day from the Eagle offense: Josh Kilpatrick, Desmond Combs and Jordan Majeed each scored eight points, while starter Matthew Boldt had six with a game-high six rebounds.

Up next, Avila men's basketball will play its first road game of the new year this Saturday, January 6 when the Eagles travel to North Newton, Kansas to take on Bethel. The women tip off the doubleheader at 2 PM with the men to follow at 4; as always, you can watch all the action live on the KCAC Network.