FULTON, Mo.—Playing in front of a capacity crowd on Tuesday night, the William Woods University men's basketball team came up just short in its attempt to send the fans home happy, as the Owls fell to NAIA Division II, No. 20-ranked Tabor College, 81-70.
The Owls (0-1), shot 40.7 percent from the floor and 75.0 (21-of-28) from the free throw line, but had its struggles from downtown, as the team netted just 20.0 percent (5-of-25) of its shots.
WWU had three players reach double-figures in points and were led by newcomer
Kevin House, who finished with team-highs in points (15) and assists (eight).
DJ Johnson and
Alec Mulvihill both provided a spark off the bench when called upon, as the duo each totaled 13 points.
Bryan DeGeare, meanwhile, had a strong debut as an Owl, finishing with eight points and a team-high 12 rebounds, 10 of which came on the defensive side of the glass.
The Blue Jays (1-0), shot 42.0 percent from the floor, 36.7 percent from beyond-the-arc, while winning the battle of the boards, 44-37.
The team was led by Lance Carter, who shot 50.0 percent (9-of-18) from the field and ended the night with a game-high 24 points. Malik Brooks, totaled 19 points in 15:34 minutes of action, while Chance LeBlanc added 10 off the bench.
Tabor earned the rebounding advantage, thanks in large part to Jonathan Gibson and Tullio Parry, who combined for 25 rebounds.
It was a slow start out of the gate for WWU, which allowed Tabor to take a 7-0 lead, capped off by a 3-pointer from Brooks at the 18:05 mark.
William Woods responded, however, as they went on an 11-2 run over the next 5:00 minutes, with a two-point basket from Johnson giving the team a lead at 11-9.
After Brooks made both of his free throws at the 8:03 mark, the score was tied 19-all, but WWU went on another run, this time a 9-2 advantage, with DeGeare bringing the crowd to its feet, as he drained a 3-pointer, at the 6:16 mark, to give the Owls its largest lead of the half at 28-21.
Tabor, continued to fight though, as they responded with a 9-2 run of its own, as with 3:38 remaining, Carter drained a 3-pointer, which tied the score up at 30-30 for the fifth time.
The two teams' would continue to battle as the clock continued to tick down, but with .58 seconds left, John Jedneak hit a two-pointer, which narrowed the teams' deficit down to 38-37. WWU scored on its next trip down the floor, as Johnson hit his shot with .35 seconds left, off an assist from House, which put the Owls ahead 40-37 at the break.
The Owls played a strong first 20:00 minutes, as they shot 53.6 percent from the floor and were led by Johnson having 10. Defensively, WWU, limited the Blue Jays to just 35.9 percent shooting from the field.
In the second half, WWU had its struggles from the floor, as they went 7-of-26 (26.9 percent) from the field, which allowed Tabor to take control.
Leading 44-43 at the 17:26 mark, both teams' went over a minute without hitting a basket, but then off a turnover, House dribbled down the court and sent an alley-oop up for
Deon Pettigrew, who slammed the ball home and brought WWU fans to its feet.
The dunk extended the teams' lead out to 46-43, but on its next possession, Tabor quieted the crowd, as Jordan Horstick hit a 3-pointer and tied the game up at 46-all.
WWU held its marginal lead at 49:48, at the 14:48 mark, but a two point basket from Carter just .42 seconds later, gave Tabor the advantage back at 50-49. The Blue Jays offense could not be slowed down after that, as they went on a 14-4 run, which gave them a 64-53 lead with 8:53 left in regulation.
The Owls cut the lead down to 70-64, after Mulvihill made both of his free throws with 5:08 left, but another 5-0 run, with Carter hitting yet another 3-pointer, ended any type of WWU comeback, as they extended its lead back to 11 (75-64). Despite its valiant effort, William Woods fell to Tabor College in its home opener by 11. Â
After shooting under 40.0 percent in the first half, Tabor improved drastically in all phases in the second, as they shot 50.0 percent (15-of-30) from the floor, 45.5 percent from beyond-the-arc and 69.2 percent from the charity-stripe.
The Owls will return to the court this weekend, as the team will participate in the Columbia College Cougars vs. Cancer Classic.
The team will play Culver-Stockton College on Friday at 4 p.m. and conclude the Classic with a showdown against Cumberland University on Saturday. That game will tip-off at 3 p.m.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com this weekend for a full recap and scores from Columbia College.
