Statesmen Stave Off Upset, Drop Mustangs 103-85

William Penn mens basketball held off Mount Mercy to go 4-0 on the season.

William Penn mens basketball held off Mount Mercy to go 4-0 on the season.

Oskaloosa–The third-ranked William Penn men’s basketball team had to wait until very late to finally put away a pesky Mount Mercy squad in a 103-85 Heart of America Athletic Conference win Wednesday.

The Statesmen (4-0, 2-0 Heart) shot a blistering 55.6% from the field and made 15 three-pointers (53.6%), but needed all of that to hold off the Mustangs (1-3, 0-2 Heart). MMU stayed close by hitting 17 trifectas (60.7%) of its own, including 10 after halftime.

The teams, who did not meet last season after years of being rivals in the Midwest Collegiate Conference, seemed to not skip a beat in renewing their intense rivalry. WPU started slowly, facing a 9-4 deficit just over a minute into action, but slowly turned the page and took the lead for good at 14-13.

William Penn pushed the advantage to double digits on several occasions in the first 20 minutes, eventually settling for 48-41 halftime edge.

The margin was only six early in the second stanza before a 14-3 run gave the navy and gold a comfortable 64-47 lead inside of 16 minutes to go.

The Mustangs refused to make things easy, however, narrowing the deficit to 65-58 just two minutes later. The margin ballooned and shrank over the next several minutes. Unfortunately, even WPU’s game-high 19-point edge at 77-58 was not safe as Mount Mercy chipped and chipped and finally pulled to within five at 85-80 at the 4:46 mark. The visiting crew was limited to 41.2% shooting overall.

In the end, though, the Statesmen produced enough stops and hit enough buckets to stay on top for good, scoring the night’s last 12 points.

The hosts were forced into two more turnovers than MMU (20-18), but were more successful in turning their takeaways into points with a 30-20 edge in points off turnovers.

Jarvis Haywood (Sr., Charlotte, N.C., Business Management) had four of his team’s 10 thefts, but his offensive contribution was even more important as he was 8-for-14 for a team-high 23 points.

Kevin Smith (Sr., Baltimore, Md., Physical Education) knocked down five long balls as part of his 21-point showing. Lionel Ellison (Sr., New Orleans, La., Kinesiology) tallied 17 points and assisted six times, while Torren Jones (Sr., Chandler, Ariz., Sociology) posted another double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Headlined by a trio of three-pointers, Corbin Medley (Jr., Rogersville, Mo.) also added 14 points off the bench. Rufus Williams (Sr., Tuscaloosa, Ala., Physical Education) and Charles Knowles (Sr., Chicago, Ill., Physical Education), also with two blocked shots, contributed seven points apiece in the victory.

As per the norm, the Statesmen dominated the glass 44-29. William Penn has now eclipsed the century mark in scoring in three consecutive games.

“(Assistant) Coach Blake Sandquist and our scout team players were a big part of this win,” Head Coach John Henry said. “Coach and those players got us prepared for Mount Mercy tonight. We are still a work in progress, but we all enjoy learning while still winning.”

“Rufus and Corbin were awesome off the bench,” Henry added.

Next Up: William Penn travels to Baldwin City, Kan. Saturday to face Baker in Heart play at 4 p.m.

Posted by on Nov 18 2016. Filed under College Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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