Sophomore guard Alec Mulvihill paced the Owls with 15 points in a season-opening 72-61 loss to the Vikings on Saturday at Anderson Arena.
Mulvihill hit on 6-of-11 field goals and 3-of-6 3-pointers, while pulling down three rebounds.
Senior forward Nate Bitner added 14 points and collected six rebounds, while junior forward DJ Johnson scored 10 points. Sophomore forward Klayton Kuschel went scoreless, but tied for the game-high with seven rebounds.
William Woods hit on 43.4 percent of its field goals and was edged out on the boards 23-20.
Missouri Valley's James Lane logged a game-high 22 points, Andre Scott posted 14 and Raviel Burton chipped in 12 points as the Vikings shot 45.5 percent from the floor.
The Owls open up play in the Columbia College Classic against Graceland (Iowa) University at 7 p.m. Friday. William Woods continues action in the event against Concordia Seminary University at 4 p.m. Saturday.