FULTON, Mo. – A jumper by Darrien Dickey in the paint gave the Owls a two-point lead with 1:47 left in the contest and the William Woods University Men's Basketball team did not allow Missouri Baptist to regain the lead as the Owls came away with a 78-70 victory over the Spartans.
 
Trey Mitchell and Jonny Woolf led the Owls as Mitchell scored a team-high 25 points and Woolf followed with 22 in the victory. The Owls Brandon Vice led the Owls with 10 rebounds. Vice also scored 10 points for a double-double. WWU shot 49 percent from the floor for the game.
 
The Owls return to action on Sunday, December 4th when they host Harris-Stowe State University at 3 p.m. at Anderson Arena.
 
Game Flow
The Spartans came out scoring in the first minute of the contest as they scored the first five points of the contest. With the Spartans, ahead by three, 7-4, Trey Mitchell it a three-pointer tying the game at 7-7 with 16:10 left in the half.
 
After tying the contest at 7-7, the Owls slowly looked as if they were going to be taking control as a jumper by Vice put the Owls ahead, 14-9, with 13:35 left in the half. However, after taking the five-point lead, MBU came back and tied the game at 14-14. Both teams continued to trade lead and with 4:55 left in the game a jumper by Woolf tied the game at 26-26.
 
Missouri Baptist would end the first half by scoring nine of the last 11 points as they would take a seven-point lead, 35-28, going into halftime.
 
The Spartans grew the lead to 10 points, 40-30, on a three-pointer by Jared White in the first minute of the contest. The 10-point lead was the largest lead of the contest for the Spartans. WWU did not go away as they continued to chip away at the lead as a jumper by Vice tied the game at 40-40, with 16:38 left in the game.
 
After the game was tied at 40-40, the Spartans slowly grew the lead to six points but the Owls continued to hang tough as a three-pointer by Mitchell put the Owls down one, 48-47. A layup by Woolf with 12:58 put the Owls ahead 49-48 in the contest. After the Owls took the lead, both teams would continue to trade leads but the Spartans ahead by four, 55-51, after a David Gabrovsek three-pointer.
 
The Owls did not let the Spartans continue to extend its lead as Woolf and Mitchell hit back to back shots putting WWU ahead 61-60 with 7:01 left in the game. Again, the Spartans slowly built a lead to three points, 66-63, after a pair of free throws by White.
 
WWU continued to battle and a layup by Darrien Dickey and a three pointer by Woolf put the Owls ahead 68-66. White went down and hit a pair of free-throws tying the game at 68-68 with 2:16 left in the game. The Owls answered back on the next possession after the Owls extended its possession with an offensive rebound Dickey hit another layup putting the Owls ahead 70-68.
 
After Dickey's shot, the Owls did not trail again in the contest as over the final minute and a half of the contest, the Owls went eight-for-eight from the free throw line to secure its second American Midwest Conference game of the season. The Owls defeated the Spartans, 78-70.
 
By the Numbers
25 – Trey Mitchell led the Owls with 25 points
22 – Jonny Woolf followed Mitchell with 22 points
10 – Brandon Vice led the Owls with 10 rebounds
31 – WWU bench scored 31 points in the contest
30 – The Owls scored 30 points in the paint in the win
3 – WWU had three players score in double figures
12 -William Woods hit 12 free throws in the game