Strong Finish Helps William Penn Escape with Road Win
William Penn University Athletics
by Wade Steinlage
Kansas City, Mo.–The Statesmen men’s basketball team was up against the wall midway through the second half, but an impeccable finish allowed the squad to yet again hit a milestone as it defeated Avila 83-65 in Heart of America Athletic Conference action Saturday.
#1 William Penn (20-1, 10-1 Heart) which has won nine in a row, has now reached the 20-win plateau for the sixth-straight year and the 11th time in the last 14 years.
The navy and gold will not only retain their top rating come Tuesday’s new NAIA poll, but due to rival Grand View defeating Peru State, the Statesmen now have a two-game lead in the Heart with eight left to go.
As so many foes have done this winter, Avila (10-9, 4-7 Heart) did not make it easy for WPU, though the visitors may thought another cake-walk was in order as it bolted out to a 13-2 edge less than three minutes in.
The Eagles took the blows and bounced back, however, eventually claiming their first lead at 25-24 with 7:39 to go until halftime. The visitors recovered, though, and went back on top 37-32 at the break.
A similar script was played out in the second stanza with William Penn extending its advantage to double digits before AU reeled it back in and took the lead back at 54-53 with 11:21 still on the clock.
William Penn, which was held to its lowest point total of the season, called a timeout and obviously figured everything out because it scored 13 straight over the following four minutes and cruised to the win by outscoring its host 30-11 down the stretch.
The victors, courtesy of a 54.8% clip in the second half, outshot Avila 44.4%-40.6%. They also held a 46-27 mark in rebounding, including 20 offensive rebounds. That advantage assisted WPU in claiming a 20-8 edge in second-chance points.
The Statesmen committed two more turnovers (16-14) than the Eagles, but were better at taking advantage of their extra opportunities with a 21-13 edge in points off errors.
JC Washington (Sr., Houston, Texas, Sociology) and Dominique Shaw (Sr., Lufkin, Texas, Wellness and Recreation) topped WPU with identical double-doubles of 19 points and 12 rebounds. Washington, who was 9-for-13 from the field, also stole three passes.
The duo of Aakim Saintil (Sr., West Orange, N.J., Business Management) and Corbin Medley (Sr., Rogersville, Mo., General Accounting) were also in double figures with 11 points each. Saintil dished out six assists, while Medley guided the perimeter game with three three-pointers.
D’Angelo Allen (Jr., Dallas, Texas, Wellness and Recreation) just missed the mark with nine points; the junior also had two blocks. Terrell Thompson (Sr., Indianapolis, Ind., Wellness and Recreation) added seven and Jovontae Carleton (Jr., El Cerrito, Calif., Sociology) contributed five along with a trio of thefts.
The Statesmen experienced a poor afternoon at the charity stripe (57.1%), but AU was not much better at 60.0%.
“This was not our best performance of the year, but winning road games in this conference is a tough task and we did that today,” Head Coach John Henry said. “Corbin and Jovontae were great off the bench, especially in the second half when we needed a spark.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Cedar Rapids next Wednesday to face Mount Mercy in Heart action at 7:30 p.m.
