Oskaloosa, Iowa — Dylan Bekemeier's three-pointer with 10 seconds left that followed an Evangel offensive rebound from a missed free throw, gave the Crusaders a 90-89 win over fifth ranked William Penn on Saturday in Oskaloosa, Iowa.
Trailing 89-86, Billy Thompson II was fouled on a defensive rebound with 14 seconds left. After making the first free throw, Thompson missed the second. Evangel's Jalen Norman snared the rebound and found Bekemeier for a 23-foot shot on the right wing that connected giving the Crusaders a 90-89 lead.
William Penn got three shots off at the end of regulation as Dondre Alexander's runner in the lane missed off the glass, Steven Roundtree missed a put-back attempt in the land and point guard Jessie Pernell's shot from 15 feet out went off the glass at the buzzer giving Evangel the win.
"I never stopped believing in this team," said Evangel head coach Steve Jenkins. "We've been through some really hard times this season but we need to keep working. I still believe we have the talent to be a really good team. But William Penn has some guys that can get to the rim any time they want and play above the rim when they get there. We had to play a great game at both ends to give ourselves a chance."
Neither team led by more than seven points in a game that featured 11 ties and 23 lead changes.
Nick Yocum, returning from an injury to play for the first time since Nov. 21, led the Crusaders with 20 points. Yocum hit his first three three-point tries, had 16 points at halftime and went 5 for 8 from three-point range. Bekemeier finished with 14.
Dondre Alexander led all scorers with 29 points for the Statesmen while Steven Roundtree, a transfer from Oral Roberts, had 26 points and 20 rebounds.
William Penn had their 13 game winning streak snapped and lost for the first time since Oct. 29. It was their first conference loss as they fell to 13-2 and 6-1 in the Heart of America conference.
Evangel improved to 3-12 and 2-5 in the league.
The Crusaders play again on Monday when they host Peru State. Tipoff is 7:30 p.m. at the Ashcroft Center.
