William Penn Dominates Second Half to Avenge Loss to Peru State
Terrell Thompson (Sr., Indianapolis, Ind., Wellness and Recreation) scored 20 points, but was also an efficient distributor with 11 assists for a double-double.
by Wade Steinlage
Oskaloosa–The Statesmen men’s basketball team bounced back from a rare home loss and also avenged its only other setback of the season by crushing Peru State 110-79 in Heart of America Athletic Conference play Wednesday.
#1 WPU (22-2, 12-2 Heart) shot 61.5% in the second half and scored 61 points after intermission to start a new home winning streak; the previous streak of 37 was snapped last Saturday. Wednesday’s win puts PSC (16-9, 10-4 Heart) two games back of the navy and gold in the North Division, while fellow North foe Graceland is also now two back after falling to Clarke. Central Methodist is currently the only program within one game of the Statesmen for the Heart lead.
The Bobcats, who knocked off William Penn back in December, came ready to play and owned its biggest lead of nine at 21-12 just 6:57 into the evening.
The home squad slowly started to warm up, but was still down 41-38 with 2:45 left in the opening period. WPU closed strong, though, with an 11-4 run and was on top 49-45 at intermission.
The contest was still a tight one at the 15:27 mark with the Statesmen ahead just 56-52, but the hosts pulled away with a 15-0 run over the next 2:29. Aakim Saintil (Sr., West Orange, N.J., Business Management) took over during the run by scoring 11 of his 12 total points, highlighted by a trio of three-pointers. William Penn made 11 long balls Wednesday.
The advantage grew to a game-high 33 points in the waning minutes as the victors finished with a 57.0%-36.0% shooting margin.
As per the norm this winter, the Statesmen were balanced offensively with seven players hitting the double-digit mark. Terrell Thompson (Sr., Indianapolis, Ind., Wellness and Recreation) scored 20 points, but was also an efficient distributor with 11 assists for a double-double.
Dominique Shaw (Sr., Lufkin, Texas, Wellness and Recreation) was next with 17 points, while D’Angelo Allen (Jr., Dallas, Texas, Wellness and Recreation) topped the bench with 16 points. The duo combined for another 11 assists as the navy and gold assisted 35 times on their 45 made baskets.
JC Washington (Sr., Houston, Texas, Sociology) matched Thompson with a double-double, scoring 13 points and pulling down 16 rebounds. The hosts won the rebounding battle 54-42, but were actually outscored 14-12 in second-chance points.
Conversely, WPU had three more turnovers (13-10), but were eight better (16-8) than PSC in points off turnovers. William Penn also overcame a sub-par effort at the charity stripe (9-for-20).
Mikeal Donaldson (Sr., Columbia, S.C.) and Corbin Medley (Sr., Rogersville, Mo., General Accounting) reached double figures as well with 10 points apiece, while Antonio Foster (Jr., Chicago, Ill., Sports Management), with seven points, and Brandon Trotter (Sr., Louisville, Ky., Kinesiology), with five points, also contributed Wednesday.
“I am extremely happy with our team having 35 assists on 45 made baskets,” Head Coach John Henry said. “We played an excellent second half.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Olathe, Kan. Saturday to face MidAmerica Nazarene in Heart action at 4 p.m.
