STERLING, Kan. – The Tabor College Men's Basketball team traveled an hour down the road to face KCAC foe Sterling College. The Bluejay men were coming off their first win in conference play against Avila University, while the Warriors were coming off a loss to the current KCAC leaders, Southwestern College.
Tabor College Head Men's Basketball Coach Matt Warren has seemingly found the lineup he wants to stick with for the season, as the starters were the same as the past eight games: Kalep Crane, Kenyon Holcombe, Jake Proctor, Thatcher McClure, and Jack Voth.

Sterling showed that they were going to be a dangerous team after their loss on Wednesday, starting the game by storming out to a 21-3 lead. Voth cut the deficit to 16 with a layup at the 11:56 mark and was responsible for the next three points as well, by way of another layup and a made free throw, to bring the Bluejays within 13. The Warriors would push the lead back out to 18 at the 8:54 mark with a Mooch Austin three, but the Bluejays would respond and continue to chip away at the lead. A three from Voth off a fast break at the 5:26 mark helped breathe some life for Tabor, bringing the Bluejays within ten. This relief would be short-lived however, as the Warriors would stretch their lead out to 20 points. A layup from Proctor with five seconds remaining in the first half would cut the Bluejays' deficit to 15.

Voth led the Bluejays in scoring in the first half with 12, while Crane, McClure, and Jaiden Miller each had seven. The Bluejays shot had a 60% field goal percentage, going 12-20, while the Warriors were able to get more shots off, shooting 19-34, but had a percentage of 55.9%. Tabor had 11 rebounds in the first half, with all of them being on the defensive glass. At the end of the first half, the score was 56-41 in favor of Sterling.

Crane put the Bluejays on the board first in the second half with a layup. The Warriors responded and built up a 17 point lead, but the Bluejays would continue to battle back every time Sterling scored. A made free throw from Crane at the 9:51 mark put Tabor just seven points behind the Warriors. Both teams would go on to trade buckets, but the closest the Bluejay men would come would be within six, with Sterling winning, 92-86.

Voth led the Bluejays in scoring with 23, while McClure finished behind him with 20, and Crane had 11. The Bluejays finished with 27 boards, with 26 of them being on the defensive glass and only one on the offensive side. The Bluejays had a better field goal percentage with 53.8% to Sterling's 52.4%, and both teams shot 40% from three, however the Bluejays did not shoot well from the free throw line, shooting 68.6%.

Coach Warren had this to say about the game, "Last night was a tale of two halves and really the first five minutes of the game were the difference. You can not get behind like we did in this league and expect to win very often. Obviously, we are searching to find some consistency defensively, as we have improved on the offensive side. Hats off to Sterling, they made some tough shots and really executed offensively. What I do know is this team will continue to work and get better."

The Bluejays will return home and will have to regroup quickly and prepare to face the Eagles of Oklahoma Wesleyan University on Wednesday, who are also coming off a tough conference loss. The game will tip off at 8:00 pm and will be broadcast on the KCAC Network, as well as on the Tabor College YouTube page. Live stats will be available here.

Tabor College is a Christ-centered institution located in Hillsboro, Kansas. The Bluejyas are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).