ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The William Woods University men's basketball teams four game winning streak was snapped Saturday afternoon as they fell 82-62 to No. 3 Missouri Baptist. The Owls are now 13-7 overall and 10-4 in the AMC.
 
David Johnson Jr. recorded his second straight double-double tonight scoring 23 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Aaron Brookins followed with 13 points on 2-7 shooting.
 
WWU looks to get back on track Thursday Jan. 31^st as they face Freed-Hardeman. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Anderson Arena.
 
Game Flow
Missouri Baptist opened the first half with a two-point basket from Callum Barker giving them a 2-0 lead. William Woods finally got on the board when David Johnson Jr. hit one of two from the foul line. A minute later Johnson Jr. was fouled and sent to line for the second time in the contest where he went 2-2 and put the Owls ahead 3-2.
 
Just about 2-minutes into the half, Kai Woodfall hit a deep three-pointer for MBU giving them a 5-3 advantage. Moments later Johnson Jr. tied the game a nice midrange jump shot. Johnson Jr. scored the first 10 points for the Owls.
 
With 16:45 on the clock, Missouri Baptist was able to gain a 12-5 lead when Jahmouri Robinson knocked down a three from the top of the key. WWU responded with a three-point bucker of their own coming from Johnson Jr. Seconds later, Makenzie Fessler scored his first points on the game and a Pablo Hernedez turnover putting the Owls within two.
 
Finally, after a short Spartans run, Johnson Jr. tied the game 12-12 on another midrange jumper.
 
After an early back and forth battle, Torrance Little had a strong finish in the paint to put the Spartans ahead 14-12. Littles basket also sparked a 13-0 run putting them up 25-12.
 
The Owls were able to slow MBU down when Aaron Brookins knocked down both his foul shots.
 
William Woods was finally able to get within single digits when Treshawn Gause made a quick 15-footer putting WWU behind 25-16. But Missouri Baptist would regain a 12-point lead when Hernedez hit a wide open three-point basket pushing their lead to 28-16.
 
With a little over 5-minutes remaining in the half, Missouri Baptist worked their way to their largest lead of the game 35-16. A Brookins three-point basket from the wing would giving WWU some confidence in the final minutes of the half. Brookins got off to a hot start in the first half scoring an efficient 12 points.
 
Exactly 1-minute later, Brookins knocked down another three-pointer to put WWU down 38-24.
 
At the 1-minute mark, Brookins was fouled and send to the line where he went 2-2. The Owls did not allow another MBU basket but would walk into halftime down 38-26.
Returning from the half, the Owls were the first to put points on the board when Fessler had a strong finish in the paint putting the down 40-31.
 
Missouri Baptist responded to the WWU basket with a three-pointer coming from Robinson stretching their lead to 43-31. William Woods returned the favor with a three-point basket of their own coming from Brian Enriquez.
 
After trading three pointers, Robinson knocked down his second straight three-point bucker putting the Spartans back up 12.
 
Robinsons second three pointer would spark a huge MBU run. Seven minutes into the second half they found themselves up 57-39.
 
William Woods never gave up in the contest. After the MBU run, Johnson Jr. connected on a nice turnaround jumper putting the Owls down 57-41, but it would not be enough to slow the Spartans down as they were able to gain a 71-43 lead.
 
 
As time continued to run of the clock, the Missouri Baptist lead continued to increase. The Owls connected on a few more attempts before finally falling to the Spartans.
 
MBU dribbled out the remainder of the clock and walked away with an 82-62 conference victory.
 
By the Numbers
 .28.8% - The Owls shot 28.8% from the field
.70% - WWU shot 70% as a team from the foul line
9 – William Woods only committed 9 turnovers in the contest
10 – David Johnson Jr. led WWU with 10 rebounds
13 – Aaron Brookins chipped in 13 points for WWU
17 – The Owls scored 17 second chance points  
23 – Johnson Jr. led William Woods with 23 points