Box Score (PDF)
BATESVILLE, Ark. – The Lyon College men's basketball team rallied back from a 10-point deficit with just under 11 minutes remaining in the second half and took a 51-49 lead over William Woods with 3:05 remaining. After a free throw by Codi Whitlock cut the Scots' lead to 51-50, Lyon College held WWU scoreless over the final two minutes of the contest for a one-point victory in the American Midwest Conference's 'Game of the Week.'
Lyon improved to 9-3 (5-1 AMC), while WWU fell to 7-7 (3-4 AMC).
The Scots found much of their success early by finding their big men inside as a pair of buckets each by Cole Anderson and Jonathan Iliya gave Lyon an 8-3 lead just five minutes into the contest. William Woods responded with an 8-2 run over the next five minutes to take its first lead of the game at 11-10 on a layup by Tyriel Nelson.
The two teams battled back-and-forth from there until a three-pointer by Makenzie Fessler sparked a 13-2 run by the Owls to end the half as William Woods took a 30-21 lead over the Scots into halftime.
The Scots clawed their way back into the game early in the half as a pair of free throws by Grant Patterson knotted the score at 32-32 before William Woods grabbed a 47-37 lead over Lyon with 10:53 left in the game.
A layup by Winston Peace followed by five straight points by Ray Price brought the Scots back within three points just moments later as Lyon continued to chip away. After a pair of free throws by Fessler, the Scots found themselves with their first lead of the game since the 4:11 mark in the first half on a three-point play by Anderson that gave Lyon a 51-49 advantage. Whitlock went on to split a pair of free throws for the Owls just a minute later as the Scots held WWU scoreless for the final two minutes and hung on for a 51-50 victory.
Anderson led the Scots with a team-high 17 points in the win. Nelson led all scorers for WWU with a game-high 18 points.
The Scots will travel to Mississippi University for Women (The W) on Dec. 30 for a non-conference matchup at 6 p.m. in Columbus, Miss.
Men's Basketball Contact: Matt Jagodzinski
870-307-7516 | matthew.jagodzinski@lyon.edu
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