WALNUT RIDGE, Ark. – Despite their strong outing to start the second half, the William Woods University men's basketball team fell to Williams Baptist University to close out their regular season. The 82-77 loss drops the Owls to 14-15 on the season with a 10-12 conference mark.
 
The Owls await their fate in the 2020 American Midwest Conference Championships. They will be officially out if Missouri Baptist defeats Hannibal-LaGrange on Saturday, Feb. 29. If Hannibal-LaGrange wins, the Owls and Missouri Baptist will be tied for the eight-seed and will go to the second tiebreaker rule (record against all resolved seeds in descending order). 
 
By The Numbers
20 – Ian Hodges led the team with 20 points after hitting five three-pointers.
19 – Makenzie Fessler scored 19 points.
12 – Codi Whitlock went 6-for-7 from the field for 12 points.
10 – Darius Yohe pulled down a team-high 10 boards.
4 – Fessler and Tyriel Nelson each recorded four assists.
 
Game Flow
The Owls and WBU opened the game with five lead changes. After four minutes of play, WBU took hold of the lead. With back-to-back threes, WBU put up a seven-point lead with 13:24 to play, 19-12.
 
Four points from Makenzie Fessler cut the game to three with 12 minutes to play, but WBU pushed out a 13-point lead with just under eight to play, 30-17.
 
Two more free throws from Fessler and back-to-back three-pointers from Ian Hodges and Mike Robinson brought the Owls within five with 6:22 on the clock, 30-25.
 
WBU pushed back a double-digit lead, but the Owls scoring on consecutive possessions put them back within six. 
 
WBU closed out the half with a 6-0 run to take a 12-point lead, 46-34.
 
The Owls blasted a 23-8 run through the first 10 minutes of play to take a one-point lead, 57-56.
 
A jumper from Codi Whitlock began an Owls' 14-3 run to take up a 10-point lead with 4:38 on the clock, 73-63.
 
WBU evened the score and took the lead as they pushed a 13-0 run in the final three minutes of the game to win it 82-77.