Eagles Rally to Overcome Trojans; Punch Ticket to AMC Championship Game

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (2/28/26) – The Williams Baptist University men's basketball team defeated Hannibal-LaGrange 77-72 in the American Midwest Conference Tournament semifinals inside W.E. Dowell Fieldhouse on Saturday night.

The Eagles advance to the AMC Tournament championship game for the first time since 2018, and the second time in program history.  No. 3 WBU will face No. 1 Columbia on Monday, March 2, with tipoff scheduled for 7 p.m. inside W.E. Dowell Fieldhouse in Springfield, Mo.

Amarion Wilson led the way for the Eagles in the victory with a season-high 19 points alongside a team-high seven rebounds.  Benjamin Noonan followed up with 16 points, and Jesse Washington poured in 14.

As a unit, the Eagles went 28-for-65 (43.1 percent) from the field and 6-of-19 (31.6 percent) from three-point range.  WBU scored 15 points at the charity stripe and posted 19 points off turnovers.

HLGU used an early 7-1 run to take a 10-4 lead in the opening four minutes of the ballgame.  The lead expanded to as much as 12 points midway through the first half, but Williams cut the lead to eight at the halftime buzzer to trail 39-31.

The Trojans took their largest lead of the game early in the second half at 48-34 with 17:57 to play.  The Eagles did not back down from the deficit, though, as Amarion Wilson cut the lead to 10 with a layup with 13:37 to play.

A layup from Washington kicked off a 10-0 Eagle run that cut the Trojan lead to 61-59.  HLGU responded with a three, but Jesse Washington tied the game at 64-64 with a free throw a minute later.

After trading baskets, Williams took its first lead of the second half on a free throw from Benjamin Noonan with 4:17 to play.  A Christ Theodor slam kept the run going as WBU led 73-70 going into the final two minutes.

The WBU defense clamped down with under two minutes to play, as HLGU could not hit the game-tying shot.  Jesse Washington sank a layup to expand the lead to 75-70.  HLGU cut the lead to 75-72, but Amarion Wilson iced the game with a tough jumper with 12 seconds on the clock to secure the win for WBU.

Williams expands on its program-record single-season win total with its 22nd win of the 2025-26 campaign.