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DETROIT -- The Wayne State University men's basketball squad (4-1 overall) claimed its third consecutive win with a 74-66 triumph over visiting Kalamazoo College (3-3 overall) Wednesday evening at the Matthaei.

In the first meeting in 72 years between WSU and KC (last meeting was 12/13/1941 - Wayne University won 39-30 at Detroit Central High School), the host Warriors stepped up their defensive effort in the second half limiting the visiting Hornets to 32 percent (9-of-28) from the floor and 17 percent (2-of-12) from beyond the arc after intermission.

The victory marked head coach David Greer's 43rd opponent he has defeated in his 12-plus years as the Wayne State bench boss.  Last Saturday, Greer moved into second place on the WSU men's basketball all-time wins list surpassing the legendary Joel Mason with his 187th win.

WSU started strong vs. KC scoring the first seven points after the Hornets won the opening tip, but the rest of the first half was a back-and-forth affair with six lead changes and five ties (9, 12, 14, 16 and 19).

During the opening surge, sophomore guard Gavin Toma (Troy, Mich. / Southfield Christian) had a lay-up and a three-pointer while senior forward Bryan Coleman (Southfield, Mich. / Lathrup) scored from down low.

K-zoo's largest lead of the contest came near the mid-point of the first half with a three-point margin (19-16) prior to Coleman making four free throws in a span of 30 seconds helping the Warriors regain the advantage.

The Hornets had one more lead in the opening 20 minutes as Keith Garber drained a three-pointer putting the guests in front 32-31 with 5:18 left.  However, that would be the last point for KC until the opening possession of the second half.  Wayne State went into halftime on a 6-0 run with the three buckets coming from freshman guard Clark Bishop (Detroit, Mich. / Renaissance), senior forward Gerald Williams-Taylor (Flint, Mich. / Northern) and Coleman.

The Warriors led 37-32 at the break despite allowing the Hornets to shoot 48 percent (12-of-25) from the floor including 6-of-13 (46 percent) from beyond the arc.

Coleman led all scorers with 16 points at intermission, while classmate Chene Phillips (Detroit, Mich. / Renaissance) had an all-around first half with five points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals.

There were five ties in the second half with the last one coming at 60 with 4:10 remaining.  Prior to the final deadlock, the largest lead for either team was a 60-54 advantage for WSU as Coleman split a pair from the charity stripe with 8:31 remaining.  After the Hornets tallied six consecutive points, the Warriors responded with five straight on a pair of free throws by Coleman and another triple by Toma.

KC pulled within four (65-61), but a jumper by Phillips and a pair of foul shots by Toma increased the margin to eight (69-61).  WSU's lead was never less than six in the final minute.

Coleman finished with a game-high 26 points along with seven rebounds and four blocked shots.  Phillips contributed 21 points, six rebounds, six steals and four assists.  Both players played 39 minutes in the game.

Toma added 14 points and five boards, while senior center Michael Martin (West Bloomfield, Mich.) totaled four blocks and four offensive rebounds.

Mark Ghafari led Kalamazoo with 23 points which included 4-of-12 from beyond the arc and 9-of-10 from the foul line.  Adam Peters chipped in with 13 points and three blocked shots, while Chase Baysdell had a game-high eight rebounds.

Wayne State will play its next two games on the road starting with a 3 p.m. Saturday contest at Lake Erie.