Eagles Set School Record For Single-Season Wins With AMC Quarterfinal Victory Over Patriots

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (2/27/26) – The Williams Baptist University men's basketball team defeated Mission 80-72 in the quarterfinal round of the American Midwest Conference Tournament inside W.E. Dowell Fieldhouse on Friday night.

Deion Wesson and Benjamin Noonan led the scoring charge for WBU with 19 points each.  Rico Quinton followed up with 17 points, and Jesse Washington posted a double-double on 13 points and 11 rebounds.

As a team, WBU went 28-of-65 (43.1 percent) from the field and 6-of-21 (28.6 percent) from three-point range.  WBU won the battle on the glass with 48 rebounds, and scored 24 points in the paint.  Williams led the game wire to wire.

The Eagles pushed out to an early lead in the first half.  Three-pointers from Benjamin Noonan and Deion Wesson combined for an 8-0 run that put WBU ahead 22-10.  James Blair ended the first half with a layup to send Williams into the locker room ahead 44-32.

Mission punched back in the second half.  A jumper from Jamarian Cato cut the deficit to 56-51 with 11:06, but WBU responded with a layup from Washington and a three-pointer from Amarion Wilson to push the advantage back to 10 with 9:49 left to play.

The Patriots continued to chip away on their home floor.  A layup from Najee Williams cut the Eagles lead to 71-68 with just under three minutes to play.  Noonan responded with a jumper, then Rico Quinton pushed the lead out to 77-70 with a tip-in basket with 30 seconds left and ice the game.

The win moves WBU to 21-5 overall on the season, setting a new record for wins in a season.  The Eagles move on to the semifinal round of the AMC Tournament for the first time since 2020 and eighth time overall.

Next, WBU will face Hannibal-LaGrange on Saturday, Feb. 28.  Tipoff against the Trojans is set for 7:30 inside W.E. Dowell Fieldhouse.