Junior guard Shannon James made three free throws in the last 15 seconds as the WWU Owls escaped with the win over the Haskell Indians in Tuesday night's home opener at Anderson Arena.
William Woods University (5-3) rolled into halftime with a 45-30 lead, but Haskell Indian Nations University rallied in the second half by shooting 52 percent (15-of-29). The Indians (1-8) took a 69-66 lead on Zach Bruns' 3-pointer with 1 minute, 27 seconds left in the game.
James made it a one-point game with a basket in the paint with 1:16 to play and then put the Owls on top 70-69 by connecting on a pair of free throws with :15 remaining. He accounted for the final margin by making a free throw with :04 to go.
Senior guard Deon Pettigrew - who was 4-of-6 from 3-point range - finished with 18 points to lead four players in double figures for William Woods, which shot 46 percent (30-of-66) as a team. James was next with 17 points, senior center Klayton Kuschel provided 12 and senior forward Keith Jackson had 10.
Kuschel also collected a game-high 13 rebounds to guide the Owls to a 47-34 advantage on the boards.
T'salidi Seqouia answered with a game-high 21 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to pace Haskell, which shot 44 percent (28-of-63) overall. Bruns - who hit 4-of-5 3-pointers - added 16 points and George Hill contributed 12.
William Woods plays an exhibition at NCAA Division II Southwest Baptist University at 7 p.m. Monday.