Statesmen Silence Grand View in Road Clash
Des Moines–The William Penn men’s basketball team earned a hard-fought 84–77 road victory over Heart of America Athletic Conference rival Grand View Wednesday.
The Statesmen (15–5, 9–3 Heart) were locked in a tight battle early, playing Grand View (12–7, 7–5 Heart) to a 19–19 tie midway through the first half. Both teams traded baskets down the stretch, but after Grand View took a 32–27 lead with 5:29 remaining, the Vikings caught fire. A 13–2 run closed the half and sent Grand View into the break with a 49–34 advantage.
Despite both squads making 14 field goals in the opening half, Grand View shot more efficiently, connecting at a 48.3% clip compared to William Penn’s 42.2%. The Vikings also held the edge from long range, hitting 50% from beyond the arc to the Statesmen’s 26.7%. Daivion Boleware (Jr., Jackson, Mich., Psychology) led all scorers at halftime with 14 points, while Foday Sheriff (Jr., Upper Darby, Pa., Business Management) added 11 points and six rebounds.
William Penn emerged from the locker room with renewed energy, but Grand View maintained control through the first 10 minutes of the second half. Trailing 58–48, the Statesmen sparked a decisive 19–8 run to reclaim momentum. William Penn finally pulled ahead at 67–66 and never looked back, closing the game on a 17–9 stretch to seal the 84–77 win.
The Statesmen finished the contest shooting 50% from the field and 40% from three-point range, outpacing Grand View’s 42.2% overall shooting and 33.3% effort from deep.
Sheriff led the way with a dominant performance, posting 22 points and 14 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. He also dished out seven assists. Boleware followed with 20 points, while Javin Tindall (Jr., Albuquerque, N.M., Sports Management) contributed 14. Javion Belle-McCrary (Sr., Reform, Ala., Sports Management) and Yonis Mohamud (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn., Sports Management) rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
William Penn controlled the boards with a 32–26 rebounding advantage and turned a 9–7 deficit in offensive rebounds into a 14–7 edge in second-chance points. The Statesmen committed 14 turnovers, leading to 17 Grand View points, while forcing 10 Viking miscues that resulted in 12 points of their own.
“This is a great win for us! We just refused to give up. Things weren’t going our way most of this game. Our guys just kept at it and eventually took control,” said Head Coach John Henry. “Special thank you to our fans for traveling to this game; it felt like a home game.”
Up Next: William Penn returns home Saturday to host Clarke in a Heart matchup at 4:00 p.m.
