Statesmen Unable to Get Over Hump, Eliminated in Second Round
Abrian Edwards (Sr., Austin, Texas, Wellness and Recreation). senior, led his squad with 22 points on 7-for-16 shooting. He also dished out six assists.
by Wade Steinlage
Kansas City, Mo.–The William Penn men’s basketball team came up just shy of its second upset in less than 48 hours as it fell 88-86 to #2 seed Lewis-Clark State in the second round of the NAIA Division I National Championship Friday.
The loss ends an incredible streak for #6 seed WPU (22-12), as it is the first time in six tournament appearances that the program did not reach the national quarterfinals. Over the last six trips to the Championship, the navy and gold owned a 15-6 record, which included two advancements to the quarterfinals, two appearances in the semifinals, and one showing in the championship contest.
While the matchup was tight all afternoon (the teams were separated by five points or less most of the way), the Statesmen claimed their only lead at 3-2 on a three-pointer by Shamar Bailey-DeCoteau (Jr., Toronto, Ontario, Undecided). The Warriors (29-6) answered with a 10-2 run and then pushed the edge to as large as 12 points at 29-17 with 6:46 to go until halftime.
WPU battled back with 11 of the next 12 points and eventually only trailed 40-36 at intermission. At that juncture, the navy and gold were behind in shooting at 44.1%-41.9%, but had made all five of their free throws, while L-CSC was just 2-for-6. Nine Statesmen turnovers, compared to two for the Warriors, were the big difference though.
Just as it did Wednesday against Vanguard, William Penn warmed way up from the field in the second period, improving to 56.3%, while limiting Lewis-Clark State to a 40.0% clip. Unfortunately, the Warriors got to the line an incredible 28 times, and were nearly perfect, making 27 of those shots; L-CSC finished 29-for-34 overall (85.3%), including Dana Abe going 20-for-24 himself.
So while WPU worked so hard to draw even with its foe, and eventually did once at 42-42, it could never get back on top. The remainder of the battle saw the Statesmen keep it close at five points or less, but they could never come up with the timely shot or defensive stop to take the lead.
With its tradition of national-tournament success, William Penn certainly was not the typical Cinderella, but the ‘underdog magic’, if you will, was still working late as the deficit was trimmed to one at 75-74 with 3:34 to go courtesy of a three-point play by Abrian Edwards (Sr., Austin, Texas, Wellness and Recreation). The senior led his squad with 22 points on 7-for-16 shooting. He also dished out six assists.
L-CSC answered and then kept the navy and gold at bay down the stretch to advance to a Saturday quarterfinal meeting with top-seeded LSU Alexandria.
At game’s end, the Statesmen outshot the Warriors 49.2%-42.4% and outrebounded them 39-31 (15-12 offensive). They unfortunately only forced seven takeaways, though, while committing 15 themselves. WPU was outscored 17-6 in points off turnovers and 13-9 in second-chance points.
The team’s free-throw mark of 80.0% (16-for-20) was impressive as well, but was dimmed by the unconscious effort from Lewis-Clark State.
Omar Sherman (Sr., Duncanville, Texas, Sociology) joined Edwards with a 20-point effort, scoring 20 with team highs in rebounds (8) and blocks (5).
Marlon Alcindor (Sr., Queens, N.Y., Sociology) hit a squad-best three three-pointers en route to 14 points, while Mario Manuel (So., Des Moines, Iowa, Sports Management) also reached double figures with 12 points in addition to two steals.
Bailey-DeCoteau contributed six points, while Darius Wheeler (Jonesboro, Ga., Sports Administration) finished with five.
“Our players and coaches would like to thank all the fans who came to Kansas City and all the fans who supported us throughout the season,” Head Coach John Henry said.
The loss ends the collegiate careers of Alcindor, Edwards, Nick Fullard (La Plata, Md., Communications), Isaac Sanders (Lexington, Mo., Industrial Technology), Sherman, and Wheeler.
