Point Lookout, Mo. -- Despite struggling from three-point range, the William Woods University men's basketball team nearly knocked off the College of the Ozarks on Thursday evening, falling by a 54-58 margin at Point Lookout, Mo. Seth Thomas (Hannibal, Mo.) led the Owls on the evening with 16 points.

Each team was able to score on its first possession, with Dontre' Jenkins (New Madrid, Mo.) opening for the Owls and Kyle Williamson responding for C of O before a brief cold-shooting spell struck both teams. The Bobcats were able to recover first and WWU found itself down 2-7 with 16:13 on the clock.

Andrew Miller (Whangamata, New Zealand) broke up the Bobcat run, hitting a jumper from just inside the free throw line, but the hosts were able to stretch the margin to 4-11 with 12:22 left in the half.

WWU answered with a seven-point run of its own, bookended by a pair of long-range baskets from Thomas. The sophomore knocked down a jumper at the top of the key just inside the arc and drained a trey from the left wing to tie the game at 11-11 with 10:14 to go. Logan Decker (Kansas City, Mo.) added a basket in the middle of the run as well as an assist on Thomas's trey.

The Bobcats tried to stretch the lead back out, but the Owls were able to rein them in and went into the locker room trailing 24-25.

College of the Ozarks opened the second half with a 9-4 run to put William Woods in a 28-34 hole with 15:57 on the clock, and although WWU temporarily pulled back to within three, it remained a three-possession game for much of the next 10 minutes.

The Owls would chip their way back into the game, knotting the score at 52-52 with 2:33 to go. A Thomas three - just the second make of the game for WWU - and an easy jumper for Roy McElroy (Aurora, Ill.) bookended three points from the free throw line - Miller with one and Jenkins with two - in a 8-0 WWU run.

WWU couldn't find the range down the stretch, however, and a Jenkins bucket at the buzzer would be a small consolation for the Owls, who fall to 8-9 on the campaign.

William Woods finished the game hitting at a .350 clip from the floor and missed on just one of their 11 trips to the free throw line, but a 2-of-14 mark from beyond the arc would prove costly. The Bobcats shot at a .389 pace from the floor and mustered a .294 mark from 3-pt range, adding 11-of-21 from the charity stripe. The hosts also held a 40-30 rebounding edge on the night. Thomas's 16 was a game-high, with Miller adding 13 and Decker chipping in 10. Levi Cook led the Bobcats with 16 points on the night, with Williamson adding 12.

Nick Totta's squad is back in action on Saturday night as they wrap up the four-game road swing in Springfield, Mo. Tipoff against Central Bible College is set for 6 p.m.