Nov. 13, 2007

Blair, Neb. - John Henry became the third coach in William Penn men's basketball history to win 100 games, accomplishing the feat in an 82-70 victory over Dana (Neb.) on November 6.

The win, which moves Penn to 2-1 on the year, also gives Statesmen head coach John Henry his 100th victory of his seven-year career (all at Penn). Henry has completely turned the basketball program around, from a 2-30 record in his first year in 2001-2002 (named head coach seven games into season) to a 25-9 mark and a national tournament appearance last season.

Henry, who is third on the career coaching wins list at the university behind Leon Richardson and Taylor Hayes, has also guided Penn to three-consecutive seasons with at least 19 wins and four campaigns in a row of even records or better.

The early minutes of Tuesday's matchup witnessed 11 lead changes and six ties before the Statesmen claimed the advantage for good on a pair of free throws by Caleb Stout (So., New Sharon, Kirkwood CC) with 6:39 remaining in the first half to put his squad ahead at 25-23. Penn went on a 13-1 run during that stretch to eventually go up 33-24.

Penn shot 40.0% from the field in the first half, headed by a game-high 11 points by Miller.

The Statesmen warmed up even more in the next 20 minutes by shooting 50.0% (44.4% for the night), eventually extending the advantage to 18 points at the midway point and then coasting to victory. The Statesmen held the Vikings to just 36.8% from the floor on the evening.

Kris Miller (So., Belleville, Mich., Belleville HS) scored 23 points and led Penn in almost every category, including field-goal shooting (6-8), free-throw shooting (8-10), three-point shooting (3-4), steals (3), and blocks (2).

Joe Womack (Jr., Tacoma, Wash., Lower Columbia CC), with 16 points, and Joseph Powell (Sr., Raleigh, N.C., North Idaho CC), with 11 points, joined Miller in double figures. Womack also dominated the boards with a game-high nine rebounds, while Powell dished out a team-best four assists.

Penn won the rebounding battle, 35-34, as well as the turnover category, 18-19.

Another major component of the win was the Statesmen bench, which outscored Dana's 37-12, led by Womack's 16 points. Stout and Andre Thompson (Sr., Tacoma, Wash., Washington State) also had strong offensive showings in non-starting roles with eight points apiece, while Tony Danielson (Jr., Denver, Colo., Adams State) contributed six points in the win as well.

Luke Letzring (Sr., Alta, Alta HS) matched Miller with two blocks.

"I am really happy with this win," Henry said. "We showed good composure down the stretch and our bench played great again tonight. Kris Miller had the best game of his Penn career tonight."

"I am really happy to get my 100th victory. It means a lot to me to have accomplished this feat."