FULTON, Mo. - After an explosive performance at UHSP, the William Woods (16-7, 8-3 AMC) offense took a back seat to defense on Tuesday night, as the Owls held Harris-Stowe State University (6-21, 3-9 AMC) to 40.0 percent (18-45) shooting en route to a 70-55 win.
Nate Schwartze led all scorers with 14 points on the night.
Harris-Stowe controlled the opening tip, with Bennie Amos shaking loose for a three-pointer to open the scoring. Schwartze answered for Woods off an assist by
Francis Okwuosah, with both teams missing on their next possession.
Amos found Patrick Evans open in the lane to give HSSU a 5-3 lead with 18:09 on the clock, but the lead would be short-lived and the last for the Hornets on the night.
Just 17 seconds later,
Joey Brown IV kicked to
Lavel Harris in the corner for a triple, igniting a 17-5 run for the Owls.
Ty'Shon Pannell capped the run with a jumper at the 10:54 mark, putting Woods in front 20-10.
Okwuosah found Schwartze open for a triple to extend WWU's 37-25 halftime to an even 15 points on the first possession of the half, and Woods slowly nudged its cushion to 20 points. Harris dished to Schwartze for a triple before knocking down his own three-ball for a 57-37 WWU lead with 10:04 on the clock.
Both teams hit a dry spell over the next four minutes, with HSSU missing four of its next five field goal attempts and four straight free throws and the Owls missing both of their three-point attempts and coughing up three turnovers.
The Hornets weren't able to take advantage, however, as WWU held on for a 15-point win. Woods owned a 33-23 advantage on the boards and shot 52.0 percent (26-50) from the floor on the night.
Next up for William Woods is the final road game of the regular season, as the Owls head to Columbia College on Saturday for a 3 p.m. tipoff.
