Story written by Sports Information student worker Izayah Donnelly COLUMBIA, Mo.— The William Woods University men's basketball team picked up its first win on the 2015-16 season in impressive fashion at the Cougars vs. Cancer Classic on Friday, as the team defeated Culver-Stockton College, 82-74.
"It was a significant win for us," said head coach
Nick Totta. "It helps the guys continue to buy in and we really did what we wanted to do defensively in the second half. That was key, as had we done that the entire game, we don't get behind like we did."
The Owls shot 44.6 percent from the floor, 38.1 percent (8-of-21) from downtown, while at the charity-stripe, WWU made it count, going 16-of-20 (80.0 percent).
Individually,
Bryan DeGeare had another strong outing, hitting 8-of-13 of his shots for a team-high 20 points, while adding eight boards.
"Bryan was outstanding, particularly in the second half," said Totta. "He's taking good shots, rebounding and getting better on defense."
Austin Lowery provided a spark off the bench, netting 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting, while
Kevin House added 11 points, six rebounds and a game-high six assists.
Trey Mitchell,
Deon Pettigrew and
DJ Johnson also contributed eight points apiece.
The Wildcats, meanwhile, were led by Jojuan Graham, who scored a game-high 21 points on 9-of-19 shooting. Francesc Iturria, scored 15 points, while Christian Jones and Marques Pool contributed 13 and 11 points respectively.
Things started out slowly for the Owls (1-1), as they trailed 5-0 out of the gate, but a fast break slam by Pettigrew got WWU on the board at the 17:28 mark.
After tying the game at 9-all on a basket from
Klayton Kuschel, the Wildcats (1-1), went on an 11-4 run, capped off by a two-pointer made by Christian Jones. The Owls would respond, however, as they cut the deficit to 22-20, at the 10:06 mark, after Lowery drained a 3-pointer.
Despite its efforts, C-SC couldn't be slowed down offensively, as they went on a 18-7 run over the next 7:00 minutes, which allowed them to take a 40-27 lead, its largest of the game, after Iturria, hit a 3-pointer of his own.
The Owls continued to fight, as after two made free throws by DeGeare, the deficit was down to just 45-39, with .37 seconds left, but Torrance Evans hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer, which sent the Wildcats into the locker room up 48-39.
In the first half, WWU, shot 45.5 percent from the floor, led by Johnson having eight points, while for C-SC, they shot 45.0 percent from the field.
In the second half, the Owls dominated on offense and defense, as they went on a 13-0 run, capped off by a Lowery 3-pointer, which put the Owls ahead at 52-48, with 14:45 left in regulation.
C-SC, would regain its composure and counter with a 10-2 run, as Iturria hit a 3-pointer, putting the Wildcats back on top at 58-54.
The two teams' would continue to go point-for-point, as neither one would have a larger lead than four over the next seven minutes. At the 4:44 mark, House hit both of his free throws, which put the team ahead at 70-69.
After a basket by
TaiRhe Turner, the Owls really gained some much needed breathing room, after Mitchell hit a huge 3-pointer, with just over four minutes left. The team was able to expand its lead out to 79-71 at the 1:54 mark and fend off the Wildcats to secure the 82-74 victory.
The Owls will conclude the Cougars vs. Cancer Classic tomorrow afternoon, as they go toe-to-toe against Cumberland University. Tip-off will start at 3 p.m.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com tomorrow night for a full recap and score from Columbia College.
