Strong First Half Not Enough Against League Leaders

Oskaloosa--The William Penn men's basketball team played arguably its best half of the season Monday against MidAmerica Nazarene, but then followed that up with arguably its worst half as it fell 108-72 in Heart of America Athletic Conference play.

WPU (5-14, 4-11 Heart) came up short across the board, including losing the shooting battle 50.0%-44.3% and the rebounding fight 50-36.

The hosts were exceptional in the opening 20 minutes against the Pioneers (15-4, 13-2 Heart), who remain tied atop the Heart standings.  Hitting 56.7% of their attempts from the floor, the Statesmen hung closely with MNU throughout the opening stanza, eventually claiming the lead at halftime on a free throw by Willie Anderson (Jr., Norristown, Pa., Applied Computer Science) and a bucket by Jayvin Brown (So., Waldorf, Md., Wellness and Recreation) in the final minute.

It was, however, a story of two halves as next to nothing went right for the navy and gold following intermission.  After leading 42-39 at half, WPU gave the edge right back at the start of the latter half and never regained it.

The Statesmen continued to battle, though, trailing by just three with 14 minutes to go.  Unfortunately, it all went south for the home squad from there as it lost to the Pioneers.

Jaz Farrell (Sr., Miramar, Fla., Interdisciplinary Studies) headlined the offense with 16 points on 7-for-12 from the field.  Brown also eclipsed double figures with 14 points in addition to 10 rebounds for a double-double.  Brown recorded a trio of steals as well.

Justin Bradley (Jr., Okinawa, Japan, Biology) was the top bench scorer with eight, while Cam Marshall (So., San Diego, Calif., Sports Management) (7), Jason Priah (Jr., Shaker Heights, Ohio, Information Technology) (6), and Anderson (6) also contributed in non-starting roles.  Manny Hammonds (Fr., Des Moines, Iowa, New Media) managed five points as well.

Bell dished out four assists Monday.

The Statesmen had a rough outing at the charity stripe, going 14-for-28, while the Pioneers had many more chances and converted them at a higher rate at 28-for-43.  WPU also committed 20 turnovers (12 for MNU) which translated into a 31-11 margin for the victors.

MidAmerica Nazarene's rebounding advantage also turned into a 20-12 lead in second-chance points.

Next Up: William Penn travels to Canton, Mo. Wednesday to face Culver-Stockton in Heart action at 7:30 p.m.