ST. LOUIS, Mo.— The William Woods University men's basketball team won its program record sixth consecutive game on Saturday afternoon, as the Owls defeated Harris-Stowe S'tate University, 90-77.
"It was definitley a big win tonight for us," said head coach
Nick Totta. "I thought our guys were able to keep their composure and at times we were able to play some of our best offense on the year."
The Owls (7-3; 4-0 AMC), shot 48.1 percent from the floor, 50.0 percent from downtown and 74.4 percent from the free throw line.
The team had four players in double-figures in the outing and were led by
Deon Pettigrew's season-high 31 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field, 5-of-8 from downtown and 10-of-13 from the free throw line. Pettigrew also recorded his second double-double, as he snatched down 11 boards.
"He has been a monster as of late for us, as he is making everything from everywhere," said Totta. "We had to stick him out there for 37:00 minutes due to foul trouble and injuries, but he still played a tremendous game."
Austin Lowery went a perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line for the second time this year, to finish with 15 points off the bench, while
Trey Mitchell and
Bryan DeGeare added 12 and 10 points respectively.
"We were able to spread the ball around and attacked the rim well tonight," said Totta.
The Hornets (4-6; 1-3 AMC), meanwhile, shot 41.7 percent from the field, 28.6 percent from the arc and 71.9 percent from the line.
HSSU was led by Trevor Roberts 18 points on 7-of-15 shooting, while Dominic Phillips added 14 points off the bench. Jalen Fletcher netted 12 on 5-of-5 shooting, while Craig Davila Jr., contributed 11 points.
In the first half, the Owls dominated from start-to-finish, as they shot 48.1 percent from the floor, 46.2 percent from downtown and 73.7 percent from the free throw line. They were stout yet again on defense, forcing nine Hornet turnovers and a field goal percentage of 42.9. The team held a double-digit lead throughout the first 20:00 minutes of action and were led by Pettigrew's 22 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field, including going 4-of-5 from downtown and 8-of-10 from the free throw line.
Lowery provided a spark off the bench again with seven points, while House and Turner contributed five points each.
In the second half, the Owls continued to maintain its double-digit advantage, as they stretched its lead out to 19 points at one time.
The Hornets would cut it to 10 (70-60) after a dunk, but Pettigrew would silence the HSSU crowd, as he hit a 3-pointer from the top of the arc.
Despite the late run from the Hornets, the Owls were able to hang on for the 90-77 win.
The Owls will return to action next Saturday, when they stay on the road for a showdown against Haskell Indian Nations University. Tip-off starts at 4 p.m.
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com next week for a full recap and score from Lawrence, Kansas.
