The St. Ambrose Fighting Bees are starting to find their rhythm down the stretch of the season, collecting their fourth-straight victory Monday night at Iowa Wesleyan.

The Bees traveled to Mt. Pleasant to take on the Iowa Wesleyan Tigers (10-14) in a rare late-season non-conference matchup and made the most of it, walking away victorious at a final score of 68-61 to earn their seventh win in nine games.

The first half was defined by solid defense from both teams, with only four made field goals in the first five minutes of play. The Tigers were able to knock down a couple of three-point shots to build a marginal lead early, but the Bees were eventually able to find their shooting stroke.

Ben Schols, Kieran Farell, and Tom Kazanecki all connected from three to cut into the lead. After Jake Friel converted a three-point play to cut the lead to one, Farell drove for a layup to give the Bees the lead heading into the break.

The Bees led by as many as seven after Will Spriggs layup at the 12-minute mark in the second half, but the Tigers mounted a comeback after knocking down a pair of three-pointers and two free throws to take the lead.

On the ensuing possession, Jake Conerty drew a foul and calmly made both free throws to retake the lead. The Bees defense got a stop and raced down the court for an easy Kazanecki layup.

The Bees would hold on to this lead for the remainder of the game. Spriggs and Friel both hit free throws in the final thirty seconds to seal the win for St. Ambrose.

Defense was the key for St. Ambrose again in the second half, limiting Iowa Wesleyan to under 30-percent shooting from three and just 25-percent from the floor.

Kazanecki led the way with a big game, filling in 16 points and 13 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. Spriggs and Friel both dropped in 13 each. Schols finished with 8 points and Patrick Torrey nabbed seven boards.

Farell and Grant Mason both came in off the bench to contribute seven points each. Both players connected from three.

The St. Ambrose men's team will return to conference play on Wednesday at St. Xavier.