OAKLAND, Calif. Head-Royce won the battle on the glass and pulled away late to beat St. Joseph Notre Dame 73-67 on Monday night, running its winning streak to 13 games and improving to 20-1. The Jayhawks outrebounded the visitors 40-24, grabbed 15 offensive boards and turned them into 14 second-chance points in a game with seven lead changes and 11 ties.
Johnny Williams set the tone early, scoring eight of Head-Royce's first 10 points. His second-chance basket and a Marcus Lefkovits jumper capped a 6-0 run that made it 12-4, the Jayhawks' largest lead of the night. A Micah Riebel 3-pointer pushed the margin to 15-7, but St. Joseph Notre Dame answered with a 7-0 run built on a 3-pointer and four free throws to pull within 15-14. Head-Royce went back in front 23-18 on a second-chance basket by Marcel Pierre-Louis before the visitors scored the next 10 points to take a 28-23 lead. The Jayhawks responded behind Riebel, who scored on a putback and tied the game at 29 from the line. Lefkovits gave Head-Royce the lead with a free throw, and Topher Sah hit a 3-pointer off a Riebel assist to make it 33-30. St. Joseph Notre Dame made two free throws before the break, and Head-Royce led 33-32 at halftime.
The second half went back and forth. St. Joseph Notre Dame made three 3-pointers to take leads of 40-37, 43-41 and 46-43, and Head-Royce answered each one. Micah Nyamuzuwe tied the game at 46 with a 3-pointer and at 48 with a basket. After a St. Joseph Notre Dame free throw, Nyamuzuwe hit another 3-pointer to start a 7-0 run, and Osagie Enabulele finished it with two straight baskets for a 55-49 lead. The visitors scored the next six points to tie it at 55 and took their last lead at 60-59. Riebel put Head-Royce ahead for good with a 3-pointer off a Pierre-Louis assist. Bryce Clepper scored on a drive and Riebel added a putback to make it 68-63. St. Joseph Notre Dame cut the gap to 68-67 with two straight baskets, but Riebel and Nyamuzuwe went 5-for-5 at the line down the stretch to seal the win.
Williams led Head-Royce with 18 points on 9-of-16 shooting and added seven rebounds and a block. Riebel posted a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, going 5-of-8 at the line with two assists and no turnovers. Nyamuzuwe added 10 points, including two 3-pointers, and Lefkovits had nine points and two steals. Clepper had five points and a team-high three assists.
Both teams shot 42 percent from the field. St. Joseph Notre Dame made 7 of 17 3-pointers and 16 of 24 free throws, but its six offensive rebounds produced just six second-chance points. Head-Royce's bench added 14 points, led by six from Pierre-Louis, five from Enabulele and three from Sah.
Head-Royce improved to 20-1 with its 13th straight win.
