ELKINS – Sometimes the cream just rises to the top…the great ones seem to seize the moment.
For the second time in five days, Glenville's John Williams Jr. took over a game in the late stages to lead the Pioneers to victory. On Wednesday night, he tallied 22 points in the final 11 minutes, including 18 in the final five minutes, leading GSC to a come-from-behind 78-72 triumph at Davis & Elkins.
Williams Jr. closed the night with a game-high 29 points, and also contributed seven rebounds.
Glenville was not able to fully seize control until the final minutes. Early on it was D&E racing out to a 12-3 advantage, but GSC responded quickly, formulating an 11-1 run to grab a 14-13 lead. From that point on, neither team could create separation, trading punches in what was a defensive tussle for most of the night.
Davis & Elkins began to pull back away late, taking seven point leads at 61—54, then 63-56 with only 6:04 remaining. A Williams Jr. layup with 4:59 remaining, cut the margin to 63-58 at the last media timeout. At this point, Williams Jr. went on his torrid offensive run, leading a charge that saw Glenville scorch the nets for 20 points from that point home.
Coach Justin Caldwell's squad had other bright spots on the evening; the sharpshooting duo of Tommy Williams and Zane DeSouza combined to go 10-of-15 on the night. Williams rang home four threes in a 16-point night, while DeSouza closed the evening with 12. Adrian Scarborough got back into his double-double rhythm, scoring 15 points and hauling down a game-high 11 rebounds.
In team stats, the two teams were a dead even 39-39 In team rebounding, and very close in field goal percentage. The difference came from beyond the arc, where GSC connected on 10 in 31 attempts (32.3%), while D&E ended with a goose egg, going 0-for-16.
Glenville improves to 10-13 with the win, 7-12 in the Mountain East Conference. Davis & Elkins falls to 6-19 overall, 4-15 in the MEC.
Caldwell's Pioneers return home on Saturday, hosting West Virginia Wesleyan on Winter Homecoming.
Tip-off is set for 3:00 on the Waco Center's McPherson Court.
