OSKALOOSA — The William Penn men’s basketball team secured a hard-fought 66-61 victory over MidAmerica Nazarene on Monday in Heart of America Athletic Conference action.
WPU (8-3, 5-2 Heart) started the game with momentum, jumping out to an early 12-5 lead. However, the Pioneers (5-8, 4-6 Heart) responded with a 13-4 run, claiming their largest lead of the night—a slim two-point margin—at the 10:20 mark. The contest remained a tight, back-and-forth battle, but William Penn closed the half strong, using an 8-0 run to head into the break with a 36-30 advantage.
Nine different Statesmen contributed offensively in the first half, with LeQuan Washington (Jr., Chicago, Ill.) leading the charge with six points. Jamir Reed (Jr., Philadelphia, Pa., Criminology) and Manny Hammonds (So., Des Moines, Iowa, New Media) followed closely behind with five points each.
MidAmerica Nazarene came out of the locker room firing, opening the second half with an 8-2 run to close the gap. However, the navy and gold quickly countered, reclaiming momentum with a commanding 21-12 surge that extended their lead to 10 points at the 6:38 mark. The teams traded baskets down the stretch, but William Penn held their composure to secure the victory.
Washington led the Statesmen in scoring with 13 points, while Jacore Williams (Jr., Little Rock, Ark., Business Management) followed with 10 points. Roy Jones III (Sr., Pensacola, Fla., Psychology) added nine points, and Reed contributed a well-rounded performance with eight points, nine rebounds, and three steals.
Yarayah Evans (Jr., Brooklyn, N.Y., Business Management) matched Reed with eight points, while Malique Oates (Sr., Huntsville, Ala., Sports Management) chipped in six points as well.
The Statesmen held a shooting edge, converting 45.2% of their field goals compared to the Pioneers’ 37.9% clip. However, WPU struggled from beyond the arc, hitting just 15.4% of its three-point attempts. William Penn fared better at the free-throw line, shooting 69.2% to MNU’s 44.4%.
Both squads grabbed 39 rebounds, but the Pioneers held a slight 11-10 edge in second-chance points. Turnovers proved to be a key factor, as the Statesmen capitalized on 17 MNU mistakes for 18 points, while the Pioneers managed just nine points off WPU’s 17 turnovers.
“All wins are good wins, but that was an ugly one. We’re happy to get to the end of the semester and holiday break,” Head Coach John Henry said. “I thought our second group gave us the energy tonight we needed, led by Marcellus Bryant and LeQuan Washington.”
