WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - No. 9/No. 2 seed William Woods University (29-3) went 114 days without losing, winning 24 games in that time, but the Owls' historic season full of firsts, successes and joy concluded with a 78-72 defeat to No. 19/No. 7 seed Keiser University (26-5) in the 87th Annual NAIA Men's Basketball National Championship second round Saturday at Massimino Court.
"It didn't end how we wanted, but I'm so proud of these guys for what they accomplished this year," William Woods men's basketball coach
Jordan Ashton said. "We have nothing to hang our heads on. These guys made history in so many ways. They left their mark at Woods, and they really set the standard for our program."
Tre Titus guided the Owls' offense against the Seahawks, scoring a team-high 19 points (5-9 field goals, 2-3 3-pointers and 7-7 free throws) while tacking on seven rebounds.
Henry Shannon III led The Woods' defensive effort with a team-high eight rebounds, and he added 18 points (5-8 field goals and 8-8 free throws), one assist and one steal.
In a back-and-forth game throughout, Keiser made two free throws on the opening possession, and William Woods replied with a Shannon slam from a
D'Mari Wiltz assist to tie the game at 2. Titus handed the Owls their first advantage, sinking two attempts from the line to give them a 4-2 lead with 18:02 left in the first half. After the Seahawks scored five unanswered points, WWU went back in front with a 5-0 run as
Francis Okwuosah's 3-pointer, provided by
Kevin Taylor, put the Owls up 9-7. Just under five minutes later, Taylor knocked down a 3-pointer, assisted by Wiltz, that gave WWU the first multi-possession lead of the matchup, 17-13, with 10:57 until halftime.
The two teams continued to exchange baskets, with the Owls earning their next lead, 22-21, on Wiltz's three-point play that began with a layup from an
Aaiden Ashton assist. Unfortunately for WWU, that was its final advantage of the first half. After Wiltz's three-point play, Keiser went on a 12-4 run to go in front by seven points, 33-26 with 4:22 to go in the first half. The Owls battled back and cut their deficit to two points at halftime, 39-37 - seven of WWU's final 11 points of the first half came from the charity stripe.
Wiltz got to the line on the first drive of the second half, making both free throws to knot it at 39. Following that, there were six lead changes and two ties before Keiser posted nine points without reply to take a game-high nine-point advantage (57-48) with 13:45 left.
William Woods responded with an 8-0 stretch, including four points from Shannon.
Ty'Shon Pannell landed a jumper to finish the run and narrow the Owls' deficit to one point (57-56) with 10:13 remaining. Just over three minutes later, WWU got its first lead of the second half, making five free throws without reply, three by Pannell and two by Shannon, to go up 61-60. With 5:24 left, Taylor, one of the Owls' best performers in their historic postseason run, sent them in front for the final time of their season full of milestones, splashing in a 3-pointer assisted by Shannon to put it at 66-64 WWU. From there, the Seahawks outscored the Owls 14-6 as The Woods fell by just six points.
For the game, William Woods brought down 29 boards (nine offensive) with nine second-chance points, scored 20 points off 14 forced turnovers and shot 45.2% (19-42) from the field, 35.3% (6-17) from 3-point range and 84.8% (28-33) from the free-throw line. Keiser pulled down 30 rebounds (13 offensive) with 12 second-chance points, tallied 14 points off 20 forced turnovers and converted 40.7% (22-54) from the field, 30% (6-20) from deep and 82.4% (28-34) from the stripe.
Saturday was the final game in green and white for
Mike Alexander,
Adam Barbieri, Okwuosah, Pannell,
Nate Schwartze, Shannon,
Cooper Smith, Taylor, Titus,
Jack Wetzel and Wiltz.
"I'm so thankful to coach this group and to have built strong relationships that will last a lifetime,"
Jordan Ashton said. "I love all these guys; this is truly a family.
"I want to end by giving the glory to God for allowing us to be in this position. I also want to give credit to our seniors for leading the way all year, and I want to thank everyone that's been behind us and supported us along the way. So many memories were made, and we're excited to keep building."
Shattering individual single-season/single-game records for William Woods this season were:
-Wiltz broke Kevin House's (2015-16) single-season assists record of 171 with 211 and Jamal Herriott's (Harris-Stowe State University, Jan. 17, 2009) single-game assists record of 12 with 14 against Williams Baptist University on Jan. 25 in Fulton.
-Taylor, who tied Daniel Amah's (Park University, Feb. 14, 2013) single-game rebound record with 20 versus Central Baptist College in the American Midwest Conference Tournament championship on March 4 in Fulton.
Team records and accolades for the Owls this season were:
-Won their first-ever AMC regular season and tournament titles, most wins and fewest losses in a season overall and in AMC play and broke the program's winning streak record with 24 successive victories.
-Broke the single-season total points record of 2,724 in 2015-16 with 2,726 this season.
-Broke the single-season assists record of 549 in 2015-16, with 551 this season.
-Broke the single-season rebounds record of 1,329 in 2015-16 with 1,355 this season.
-Broke the single-season offensive rebounds record of 390 in 2023-24 with 435 this season.
-Broke the single-season field goal percentage record of 47.8% in 2023-24 with a 49.2% clip this season.
-Broke the single-season 3-pointers made record of 278 in 2015-16 with 317 this season.
-Broke the single-season 3-pointers attempted record of 730 in 2013-14 with 858 this season.
-Broke the single-season free throw percentage record of 75.4% in 2021-22 with a 75.8% mark this season.
-Broke the single-game points record with 117 against Harris-Stowe in the AMC Tournament quarterfinals on Feb. 27 in Fulton. The previous record was 112 against UHSP on Feb. 8, 2024, in St. Louis.
-Tied the single-game 3-pointers made with 19 against Dillard University in the NAIA National Championship first round Friday in West Palm Beach, Fla. WWU made 19 3-pointers against UHSP on Feb. 8, 2024, in St. Louis.
Adding his name to WWU's career record book list:
-Schwartze: All-time assists leader with 329, second-most 3-pointers made with 210, third-most field goals made with 480, fourth-most points with 1,354, tied for the fourth-most steals with 80 and fourth-best free throw percentage at 77.3%.
