FULTON, Mo. - Despite a retooled roster as several players served one-game suspensions following an altercation at Missouri Baptist, William Woods (9-5, 2-1 AMC) cruised past UHSP (1-13, 0-3 AMC) 89-54 on Thursday night.
Francis Okwuosah picked up his first double-double of the season, leading all players with season highs of 22 points and 13 rebounds.
The Owls led wire-to-wire, opening with an 8-0 run and extending to a double-digit margin within the first 12 minutes of the contest.
Aaiden Ashton knocked down the triple that put WWU up by 10 with 8:01 left in the first half, converting a steal by
Nate Schwartze on the break. The make gave Woods a 25-15 lead, part of a 26-6 WWU run that extended over a nine-minute span.
UHSP's Jas Suvalija was finally able to break the run, knocking down a triple with 2:49 left in the half, to bring the score to 42-22.
The Owls were mere inches from hitting the half-century mark at the buzzer, as
Keem Odunsi's three-point attempt was just off the mark and Woods took a 47-28 lead to the locker room.
WWU rocketed out to a 17-5 run to open the second half, extending to a 64-33 lead with 12:33 on the clock.
Adam Barbieri knocked down a pair of free throws at the 3:23 mark, putting the entire Owls roster in the scorebook.
On the evening, the Owls outshot UHSP 47.9 percent (35-73) to 40.0 percent (22-55), forcing 21 turnovers and giving up just six.
William Woods takes a brief foray out of conference play on Saturday, hitting the road for a rematch at Arkansas Baptist College. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
