EMPORIA, Kan. - The William Jewell men's basketball team grabbed a 21-point second half lead and held off a furious Emporia State run late to win 77-72 on Wednesday night on the road. The Cardinals improve to 2-1 overall with the victory. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• After the home team opened with a quick 8-5 lead, the Cardinals went on a 11-0 run, led by back-to-back three pointers from Kyle Scharbrough and Justice Sutton to go in front 16-8. The Hornets responded, pulling within an possession but a Peter Obeng bucket followed by a consecutive steals that ended in layups by Isaac Patterson pushed the advantage to double digits, 30-19. 
• Jewell came out of the locker room and used a 22-12 run, led by three more triples from Scharbrough to open up a game high 21-point lead midway through the period. From there Emporia State rallied, chipping away at the deficit with a 22-3 run to pull within two with under five minutes to play. Bryce Mitchell connected on two free throws before Kanukayi Gudza scored five points over the final two-plus minutes to ensure the two possession separation. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Scharbrough led all scorers with a career high 21 points, on 6-of-8 from long range. 
• Sutton added 19 points and a team high six rebounds with Patterson added 14 points, six assists and tying his career high with five steals. 
• As a team, the Cardinals shot nearly 56% from the floor and handed out 18 assists, the most since November 26, 2024. 

UP NEXT
Jewell returns to the Mabee Center on Saturday for a non-conference match up against No. 2 Washburn at 3 p.m.