Box Score WISE, Va. – UVa-Wise men's basketball was narrowly defeated 91-87 in overtime by Urbana University Saturday evening in the David J. Prior Convocation Center. The game was close throughout the entirety with no team leading by more than nine points as the Cavaliers (3-23, 1-19 MEC) were unable to hang on to a late 76-73 lead with 1:21 left in regulation.
 
All knotted up at 76 when the final buzzer of regulation sounded, the visiting Blue Knights (2-23, 1-19 MEC) did not miss a shot in the five minutes of overtime as they willed their way to the win.
 
Despite outscoring Urbana 50-32 in the paint and collecting 29 points off of turnovers, the Cavs were outscored 23-12 off the bench and only hit four three-pointers in the entire game.
 
A layup by sophomore forward Dimitri Sousa (São Paulo, Brazil) gave the Cavs an early seven point lead with 16:22 to go in the first half. UVa-Wise continued to lead for the next 14 minutes of play but could not expand its lead by more than seven points. A 12-4 scoring run by Urbana gave the Blue Knights a one-point 33-32 advantage after a three-pointer by Aarmanni Garnett with 2:23 remaining in the opening half.
 
The Blue Knights ended the first half on a 6-0 scoring run to take a 41-37 lead over the Cavs into the locker room. The Cavs shot 46 percent (13-for-28) in the opening half and were just 2-for-9 (22 percent) from distance. Urbana connected on seven three-pointers and finished the half 14-for-31 (45 percent) from the field.
 
In the first two and a half minutes of the second half, the Blue Knights outscored the Cavs 10-4 to build a 51-45 lead on UVa-Wise. The advantage was Urbana's largest of night as the Cavs went on a 19-4 scoring run over the next five and a half minutes to take a nine-point 64-55 lead with 12:04 remaining.
 
The Cavs remained ahead and led by five at 76-71 with only 2:03 left after a three-pointer by sophomore transfer guard Demarcus Edwards (Mount Vernon, Va.). UVa-Wise got a stop on the next possession but two missed three's deep into the shot clock on the Cavs' next two trips down the court allowed Urbana to get the ball back with over forty seconds left.
 
The Blue Knight's Carlas Jackson hit a three-pointer with 29 seconds to go to tie up the game. The Cavs called a 30-second timeout to draw up a game-winning play but were unsuccessful as senior forward Matt Day (Buckhorn, Ky.) stepped out of bounds along the baseline, turning the ball over with under two seconds remaining. Urbana's half-court heave was way left of the rim, sending the game into overtime.
 
In overtime, the Cavs held the lead twice after a layup from Day and a jumper by sophomore guard Philip Owens II (Virginia Beach, Va.) but it wasn't enough as the Blue Knights went a perfect 5-for-5 from the field in the final five minutes of play. The Owens II jumper gave UVa-Wise a one-point 86-85 lead with 56 ticks left in overtime but Urbana closed the game on a 6-2 run to secure the victory.
 
UVa-Wise finished shooting 49 percent (34-for-70) from the field but was 4-for-18 (22 percent) from outside the arc. The Blue Knights went 31-for-64 (48 percent) from the field for the game and shot 43 percent (12-for-28) from downtown, seven of their 12 three-pointers coming from Jackson.
 
Sousa led the Cavs with a game-high 29 points and eight rebounds on a career-high tying 13 field goals made. Day recorded his 14th double-double of the season by scoring 21 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Junior transfer forward Gervelle Kidd (Martinsville, Va.) finished with 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting, while Owens II had 10 points and seven assists. Redshirt sophomore transfer guard Ricardo Hill Jr. (Cincinnati, Ohio) dished out a game-high nine assists as every single Cav who played scored.
 
The Blue Knights saw six players score in double figures, led by Jackson with 24, Austin Adams 13, Colin Curran 13, Jahmere Howze 11, Garnett 11 and Abner 10. Jackson and Howze also grabbed seven rebounds, while Curran contributed four assists for Urbana.
 
The Cavs will now wrap up their homestand with West Virginia State Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. The game will be Senior Night and forward Matt Day will be recognized as the Cavs' lone senior this season.
 
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