Head-Royce came back from an eight-point halftime deficit to beat Athenian 65-60 on Tuesday, Jan. 23, and extend its winning streak to 15 games. The Jayhawks improved to 22-1 on the strength of 12 3-pointers, including three from Osagie Enabulele in three attempts.
Neither team pulled away early in a game that had seven ties. Head-Royce scored first, but Athenian answered with a 6-0 run for an 8-4 lead. Nick Taubes put the Jayhawks back in front at 10-8 with a 3-pointer off an assist from Micah Nyamuzuwe, and Micah Riebel tied it at 13 with a 3-pointer off a turnover. Athenian built a 24-19 lead, but Johnny Williams hit a 3-pointer and Enabulele followed with a second-chance 3-pointer that gave Head-Royce a 30-29 edge. Athenian closed the half with a 9-0 run, scoring five of those points off turnovers, and led 38-30 at the break.
Head-Royce opened the second half with an 8-0 run. Riebel hit a 3-pointer off a turnover, Marcus Lefkovits scored inside and Williams tied it at 38 with a 3-pointer off a Nyamuzuwe assist. Athenian answered with back-to-back 3-pointers and led 48-42 before the Jayhawks took control with a 9-0 run. Marcel Pierre-Louis scored three points, Nyamuzuwe tied it at 48 with a 3-pointer and Enabulele made it 51-48 with another second-chance 3-pointer. Athenian tied it one last time at 51, but Pierre-Louis scored on a second-chance basket and Enabulele hit a 3-pointer for a 56-51 lead. Taubes made two free throws and Riebel scored off a Lefkovits assist, and the Jayhawks led 60-52, their largest lead of the night. Athenian got within 64-60 in the final stretch, and Nyamuzuwe sealed it with a free throw.
Williams led Head-Royce with 11 points, five rebounds, two steals and a block. He made two 3-pointers and finished 3-for-14 from the field. Pierre-Louis added 10 points on 3-for-6 shooting with three rebounds. Riebel also scored 10, going 4-for-7 from the field and 2-for-4 from 3-point range with two steals. Enabulele scored all nine of his points from beyond the arc. Nyamuzuwe filled the stat sheet with six points, a team-high six rebounds and a team-high four assists. Lefkovits grabbed five rebounds, four of them offensive, and had two steals.
The 3-point line decided it. Head-Royce shot 12-for-22 from deep and scored 36 of its 65 points on 3-pointers. The Jayhawks shot 39 percent overall to Athenian's 48 percent and made just 9 of 25 free throws (36 percent). They made up the difference by holding on to the ball, committing only three turnovers while recording 13 steals. Athenian won the rebounding battle 32-26, but Head-Royce had 12 offensive rebounds to Athenian's seven and outscored Athenian 10-9 in second-chance points.
The win completed a season sweep of Athenian. Head-Royce also beat Athenian 77-61 on the road on Jan. 12. The Jayhawks are now 22-1.