FULTON, Mo.—The William Woods men's basketball team will look to snap its five game skid and split the regular season series against Lyon College on Thursday night. Tip-off is set to start at 7:30 p.m. inside Anderson Arena and is presented by State Farm/Don Woodson.
The Owls (6-18; 4-10 AMC), are coming off a 67-58 loss back on Feb. 8
th against Park University, where the team shot just 36.2 percent from the floor. The offense was paced by senior
Jonathon Nutt, going 9-of-15 from the field, including 3-of-5 from downtown.
After a slow start and a turnover filled half, WWU controlled the majority of the first frame, and went to the locker room up 35-32, after
Seth Thomas nailed his two-point jumper at the buzzer.
Things, however, changed in the second half for the Owls, as after shooting 46.7 percent in the first half, they shot 25 percent in the second half and just 18.2 percent from the three-point arc, which allowed the Pirates to crawl back into the game and hold on for the nine-point win.
"Defensively we were in a position to win," said head coach
Nick Totta. "We just weren't able to convert offensively in the second half."
On the season, the offense is led by Nutt, averaging a career-best and team-high 15 points, is shooting 80.4 percent from the free throw stripe and leads the team in assists with 61.
Blake Burgess, a Jacksonville, Ill., native, is scoring 13.3 points, shooting 44.8 percent and has grabbed down a team-high 132 rebounds (5.7 rpg).
Patrick Lewis and
Nate Bitner continue to be dependable players on offense, as the duo is averaging 9.4 points, with Lewis shooting 45.7 percent and Bitner being a threat from downtown, hitting a team-high 35.2 percent from beyond the arc.
In the American Midwest Conference, the Owls are scoring 69.6 points, with Nutt totaling a team-high 12.8 points in 13 games. Burgess is netting just under 12 (11.8 ppg), while Lewis is contributing 10.1 points a night.
The last time these two teams met was back on Jan. 9
th in Batesville, Ark., where the Scots defeated the Owls 60-51, which is the lowest point total for WWU this season. The team had three players in double-figures, led by Nutt scoring 16 points, while Burgess and Bitner each added 12.
Lyon College (10-13; 9-4 AMC), has lost two of its past three games, falling to Park University (49-47) and No. 6-ranked Columbia College (62-53), after the team had been on a five-game winning streak. The Scots, are one of the better defensive teams in the AMC, holding its opponents to just 62.7 points and 58.1 in conference play.
Through 13 AMC games, the Scots are scoring 63.5 points and shooting 49.1 percent from the field, while opponents are draining just under 41 percent (40.9). Devonte Young holds a season average of 12.9, but in the AMC, the junior guard is netting a team-high in points (15.3), three-point percentage (56.4), free-throw percentage (90.6) and assists (32).
Jordan Layrock, is averaging 14.2 points in the AMC, and leads the team in rebounds with 82 (6.2 rpg), while Riley Jenkins is totaling just under 11 points (10.6 ppg).
"Offensively we have to get out and get some easy transition buckets," said Totta. "Defensively, when they prepare to attack late in the shot clock, we have to be in a good defensive position, try to make them uncomfortable and force them high and wide," he added.
The Owls will be looking for its first win against Lyon, as the Scots have won the previous three meetings.
Fans stay updated on wwuowls.com tomorrow night for a full recap and score on this AMC showdown.
