Story written by Sports Information Intern, Scott Barker.
FULTON, Mo. – The No. 8-seeded William Woods University's men's basketball team advances to Quarterfinal action of the American Midwest Conference Tournament with a 67-62 win over the No. 9 seeded Hannibal-LaGrange Trojans on Tuesday night.
 
The Owls (12-19; 8-14 AMC) shot 41.5 percent from the field and 33.3 percent (5-15) from behind the three-point line. The Owls were led in scoring by DJ Johnson's game-high 23 points on 10-of-14 from the field and 3-of-4 from the foul line.
 
Freshman Darrien Dickey and senior Nate Bitner each added 10 points. Dickey, an Iberia, Mo native, earned himself a double-double as he pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
Austin Lowery added 14 points off the bench for the Owls, while Alec Mulvihill, Jerel Wilhite, TaiRhe Turner, and Derrick Hayes combined for 10 points and nine rebounds.
 
No. 9 seeded Hannibal-LaGrange (8-20; 8-14 AMC) shot 65.2 percent (15-23) from the field in the first-half, but then struggled in the second half shooting just 32.0 percent (8-25) from the field. The Trojans shot 47.9 percent for the game on 23-of-48 shooting from the field and 30 percent on 3-of-10 shooting from the three-point arc.
 
The Trojans were led by junior guard Jay Jones who scored a team-high 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting. Wyatt Stephens netted 16 points and Daniel Piper added nine points off the bench for Hannibal-LaGrange.
 
First half action saw the score go back-and-forth with 11 ties. The Trojans got on the board first, after a Joe Reed layup only to see Nate Bitner answer with his first of two three-point baskets, for a 3-2 Owls lead.
 
Both teams would continue to trade baskets. The Owls would regain the lead at the 12:34 mark as Lowery netted a two-point basket off the assist from Ryan Hill for a 16-15 lead.
 
The duo of Hill to Lowery would hook up again at the 7:05 mark with a three-point basket by Lowery to tie the game up at 26.
 
The Owls would take a four-point lead at the 2:11 mark after a lay-up by Dickey. Jay Jones hit a two-point basket with 0:07 seconds to tie the game at 38-38 going to the half.
 
The second half was just as competitive as the first. Dickey would break the tie with a three-point basket on the Owls first possession of the second half.
 
Both teams traded buckets, with the Owls opening up a four-point lead at the 18:05 mark, after a DJ Johnson layup.
 
Hannibal-LaGrange would take their first lead of the second half at the 14:04 mark after a Wyatt Stephens two-point basket. Afterward, however, two free throws by Lowery gave the Owls a 46-45 lead with 13:35 left to go in the game.
 
Nate Bitner would add his second three-pointer at the 10:51 mark to give the Owls a four-point lead, however, Jones would answer .18 seconds later with a three-pointer to trim the Owls lead down to one (51-50).
 
With the Owls trailing by two, Johnson hit a jump shot to tie the game at 60-60 off the pass from Nate Bitner, with 2:45 to play. The Trojans would regain the lead after Greg Nicoll put in a two-point basket on the teams' next possession.
 
William Woods regained the lead at 64-62 with .29 seconds remaining after a two-point jump shot by Johnson. Mulvihill put the icing on the cake after hitting two free throws with .10 seconds left to give the Owls a five point win.
 
"Obviously its nice to get the win, because you get the opportunity to keep going, and you prevent the season from being over," said head coach Nick Totta. "In all three of our games this year has come down to that type of situation. I was just glad that we were able to win the rubber match so to speak."
 
He added, "But now obviously we have a pretty big challenge in playing the No. 4 team in the country and the champion of the league, but to me, if you are a competitor that's where you want to be."
 
William Woods will return to action in the AMC Quarterfinals against No. 1 seeded Freed-Hardeman University on Thursday night. Tip-off will start at 7 p.m.
 
Fans make sure to stay updated on wwuowls.com tomorrow afternoon for a full preview of Thursday's action at FHU.

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