Turnover Margin Key in Road Win Over Viterbo
William Penn University Athletics
La Crosse, Wis.–The Statesmen men’s basketball team took care of the ball and claimed an important 74-66 Midwest Collegiate Conference win over Viterbo Saturday.
William Penn (14-9, 3-4 MCC) won consecutive contests for the first time in over two months by committing just four turnovers, the lowest tally since also having four mistakes on November 25, 2001 against Avila (Mo.).
The navy and gold trailed twice by five points early, but finally took the lead for good at 31-30 on a bucket by Alec Schwab (Sr., Peru, Ill., Business Management). The visitors, who were up 38-30 at halftime, extended the advantage to 51-37.
The hosts were capable of a big run and unfortunately did just that to close the gap to 60-59 with 6:22 remaining in regulation.
Oliver Wells (Sr., Cedar Hill, Texas, Business Management) was the difference-maker in the end, however, as he recorded eight straight for the victors. The V-Hawks (11-12, 2-5 MCC) were never able to get closer than four points again. The senior guard also managed six assists and two steals Saturday.
WPU narrowly edged VU in shooting at 41.5%-41.0% and also turned 12 Viterbo turnovers into 13 points. Both sides recorded 38 rebounds as William Penn had to overcome hitting only 26.9% of its three-point attempts (7-for-26) and 61.9% of its free throws (13-for-21).
Shane Bosek (Jr., Lowry, Minn., Physical Education) was consistent throughout with a game-high 20 points, while Wells had 19 and Schwab had 15.
Jake Guenther (Jr., Altoona, Iowa, Secondary Education) and Erik McGee (Sr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Elementary Education) both finished with six points, while McGee also pulled down nine rebounds in the win.
“Oliver was great on both ends all night,” Head Coach John Henry said. “This was a very good win for a team that is trying to find its way.”
Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa next Wednesday to host MCC rival Grand View in the annual Toilet Paper game. The game is slated to start at 7:30 p.m.
