William Penn Dominates Grand View

Des Moines–WPU men’s basketball headed up Highway 163 to take on rival Grand View in Des Moines on Wednesday.

The Statesmen (20-3, 14-3 Heart) hit the 20-win threshold for the eighth straight season as they downed the Vikings (6-17, 4-14 Heart) by a wide margin of 95-66. William Penn 50% from the field and 32% from beyond the arc while Grand View shot 36% and 21% from long range. The rebounding battle went to the visitors, 55-47.

The navy and gold really never got pushed as they controlled the game from the jump, starting the ball game on an 8-0 run. WPU extended the lead to as much as 31 by the end of the half as Dexter Hood (Sr., Tuscaloosa, Ala.) laid in a basket as time expired.

The Statesmen coasted in the second half as they completely blew it open, reaching their largest lead of the game, 84-46, at the 6:48 mark. Ultimately, that was more than enough as they downed their rival for the season sweep.

Hood posted another huge performance as he scored a game-high 27 points while grabbing 11 boards. Brandon Faison (Jr., Charlotte, N.C., Sports Management) received his second consecutive start and delivered by putting up 20 points on 8-12 shooting.

The trio of Kevion Blaylock (Jr., Houston, Texas, Information Technology), Nathan Gehring (Jr., Waukee, Iowa), and Josh Watkins (Jr., Chicago, Ill., Sports Management) all finished in double-digits with 13, 13, and 11, respectively.

Eddie Daley (Jr., DeWitt, Mich., Business Management) grabbed nine boards while Gehring collected eight.

Chanze Cruesoe (Fr., St. Louis, Mo., Business Management) was the leading facilitator as he finished with nine assists.

“I am extremely happy to get Saturday’s and tonight’s wins, especially with us missing three of our top players, ” Head Coach John Henry said. “Our depth is definitely a strong suit of this team.”

Next Up: William Penn will return home Saturday to take on Missouri Valley at Penn Gymnasium with tip-off scheduled at 4 pm.