FULTON, Mo. – The William Woods University men's basketball team couldn't overcome a 12 point first half deficit against Bellevue University, falling 90-63 on Saturday night.
 
The Owls (1-4), jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead, after a field goal from junior Austin Lowery, who intercepted a pass a the top of the key and capitalized on a Bellevue's turnover. Although, that would be the only lead the team had the rest of the night, as WWU struggled to string baskets together to capture a victory against the undefeated Bruins.
 
Sophomore, Ryan Hill got the Owls in within one point, after an easy bucket off dribble penetration, at the 8:56 mark. WWU, however, went cold from the field as the Bruins went on 15-6 run over a 5:00 minute span to take a 37-22 lead with 1:10 remaining in the first half.
 
With .09 seconds left till halftime, the Owls got the ball after a Bellevue foul, having enough time a get a shot off before the buzzer. Jerel Wilhite, dribbled the ball down the court and connected with Alec Mulvihill in the corner, who drained a three-pointer right before the clock hit 0:00 in the first half, cutting the Bruins lead to 12 as the team headed to the locker room up 37-25 over the Owls.
 
In the first half, the Owls were 11-of-30 from the field, shooting a 36 percent, leding the way for WWU was Mulvihill, who collected six first half points. Bellevue shot a 41 percent from the field, going 12-of-29 from the floor. The Bruins also held a significant 26-13 edge on the boards in the first 20:00 minutes of play.
 
Coming out of the half, Hill would try to give the Owls offense a boost of momentum, as he knocked down a three-pointer, to cut the Bruins advantage down to single-digits. Despite a valiant effort, Bellevue's hot shooting couldn't be slowed down in the second half, going on a 20-9 run and held a game high 31 point lead over WWU at 81-50 with 4:04 left in regulation.
 
Senior Nate Bitner, would sink his second three-pointer on the night with .45 seconds left to play, proved to show that the Owls are not a team that is going to give up and will play hard till to the end, as the Bruins would go on and secure a 90-63 victory.
 
The Owls battled to find a groove offensively in the second half, as BU posted a 53-38 edge in the final 20:00 minutes of play.  WWU ending the night shooting a 37 percent from the field (23-of-61) and only 40 percent from beyond the arc.
 
Mulvihill, led the Owls on the night, as he recorded a team-high 15 points.  The Collierville, Tennessee native, shot 50 percent (5-of-10) from the floor and knocked down 4-of-7 from behind the arc.
 
Hill also ended the night in double figures, as he posted 13 points and four rebounds, while Darrien Dickey and Lowery both contributed seven points.
Bitner and Wilhite each added six points, as Wilhite went a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.
 
Bellevue connected on 52 percent of their field goal attempts (31-of-59), as the Bruins shot a blistering 64 percent (11-of-17) from the long range. Led by Hammock and Trunyan who were 5-of-6 and 4-of-6 on their three point attempts. The Bruins also out rebounded the Owls 41-31, while its bench out scored the Owls bench 52-23.
 
The Owls return to the hardwood on Tuesday, November 18^th as the team looks for redemption against Missouri Valley College. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m.
 
Fans stay updated on wwuowls.com for a preview of this match-up.
 
 
 
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