TOPEKA, Kan. – The No. 3 Washburn Ichabods bounced back from their first loss of the season erasing a one-point halftime deficit with a dominant second-half shooting performance, pulling away from the No. 25-ranked Arkansas-Fort Smith for an 81-53 win Thursday night at Lee Arena winning their 23rd game in a row at home. Washburn will host Northeastern State on Valentine's Day at 3 p.m. in Lee Arena.

Washburn (23-1, 13-1 MIAA) trailed 31-30 at the break after shooting just 37.5 percent in the opening half, but flipped the game immediately out of the locker room. The Ichabods opened the second period on an 11-2 surge to build a 41-33 lead and never let the margin dip below six the rest of the way. A 10-0 run midway through the half stretched the advantage into double figures, and a later 13-3 burst pushed the lead past 20 as the Lions (18-5, 9-5 MIAA) lost their first game ever in Topeka.

The Ichabods shot 55.9 percent in the second half (19 of 34) and 46.8 percent for the game, compared to 34.4 percent shooting by the Lions holding UAFS to 9 of 29 shooting in the second half (31 percent). Washburn also heated up from deep, finishing 11 of 32 from 3-point range (34.4 percent), while holding the Lions to 6 of 25 (24.0 percent) including 3 of 14 in the second half.

Balanced scoring fueled the separation. Jack Bachelor's 16 points led the way for the Ichabods, hitting 4 of 6 from beyond the arc, while Bryson Smith added 15 points and four assists. Jeremiah Jones scored 14 points, and Dillon Claussen filled the stat sheet with eight points, seven rebounds, six assists and three blocks as Washburn controlled the paint and the glass outrebounding the Lions 46 to 28 while outscoring them in the paint 36 to 26.

Jarren McAllister paced the Lions with 14 points on 7-of-12 shooting and was the only visitor to reach double figures.

Washburn won the offensive rebounding battle as well with a 16-8 edge on the offensive glass that led to a 24 to 8 advantage in second-chance points. The Ichabods also outscored the Lions 13 to 8 in fast-break points, turning defensive stops into quick offense during their decisive runs.

Overall the Ichabods outscored the Lions 51 to 22 in the second half holding UAFS to more than 30 points below its scoring average.

Notes:
• Marcus Glock tied a career-high with three assists.
• Tyson Ruud tied a career-high with three blocks.
• Jack Bachelor recorded his 400th career assist.
• Jeremiah Jones tied Will McNeill for second on the single season steals list with his 76th against the Lions … the single-season record with 82 set by McNeill during the 2012-13 season.
• The Ichabods' 26-game homecourt winning streak is the second-longest in program history trailing only the 28-game streak from Nov. 19, 1993 to Feb. 8, 1995.