Kirkwood High School boys basketball coach Bill Gunn put a renewed emphasis on defense in the midst of his team's three-game losing streak.

Gunn's kids apparently got the message as they ended the streak on Friday night with a 51-44 victory over Fort Zumwalt South in the third game of the inaugural GAC/Suburban Basketball Challenge at the Family Arena in St. Charles.

Fort Zumwalt South provided the perfect test for the Pioneers' increased attention to the defensive end. Just seven days ago, South defeated Kirkwood 67-62 in the third-place game of the St. Charles West Warrior Classic.

In that game, the Bulldogs' talented backcourt of J.R. Alexander and George Cater torched the Pioneers for 42 points. Alexander scored a game-high 28 points while Cater scored 14 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter when the Bulldogs rallied from an 11-point deficit.

Friday night's game was a different story as the Alexander-Cater duo was held to a combined 13 points and only four field goals. Cater scored only four points before fouling out with two minutes and 54 seconds left in the game. Alexander scored nine points, but he didn't score his first field goal until there were less than three minutes left in the game. Both guards came into the contest averaging 16 points a game.

"We just wanted to make them work hard for their points," Gunn said. "Those are two really good basketball players. I really respect them as a team because they are a tough opponent. We're still trying to figure out what kind of team we're going to be. We decided that we're going to play defense. If we have to grind out games that are in the 40s in order to win, that is what we'll have to do."

Junior forward Myles Artis led the Pioneers with 20 points, but he was just as proud of the defensive effort put forth by his teammates in slowing down a talented Fort Zumwalt South team and getting back on the winning track.

"The St. Charles West Tournament was a big disappointment for us," Artis said. "We came into practice this week with a new attitude and a different mindset. We wanted to play better defense and that's what we did. Defense wins games."

The Pioneers needed all of the defense they could muster because that is what kept them in the game in the first half. They only had two field goals in the first quarter as they trailed 12-6. The Pioneers battled through more cold shooting in the second quarter, but they managed to take a 21-20 lead at halftime on senior Michael McDowell's 3-pointer at the buzzer.

It was the Pioneers' first lead of the game and they never trailed again. Artis went to work in the third quarter as he scored 11 points to help Kirkwood push the lead to 36-30 after three quarters. Artis did much of his damage in the lane as he scored on drives to the baskets and tough post-up moves.

 "Myles is a really good player," Gunn said. "He really came through with some big baskets when we really needed it."

The Pioneers built the lead to 47-36 in the fourth quarter, then had to survive some late 3-point shooting by the Bulldogs to hold on for the victory. McDowell scored eight points while forward Clark Randall added seven points.

Kirkwood (3-3) will return to action on Monday, Dec. 27 when it participates in the Meramec Holiday Tournament. The Pioneers, who drew the No. 7 seed, will face No. 10 seed Troy at 8:30 p.m.