WISE – UVA Wise had the lead late in what had been a highly entertaining back-and-forth South Atlantic Conference contest Wednesday evening, only to see Tusculum tie it up and force overtime. As an answer, the Highland Cavaliers grabbed the lead to open the extra frame and never looked back in the 86-78 overtime win over Tusculum on the Quillen Court.
With the win, the Cavs solidify their hold on third place in the South Atlantic Conference standings. They have won eight out of their last nine games.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Result: UVA Wise 86, Tusculum 78 (OT)
Records: UVA Wise (12-6, 9-5 SAC); Tusculum (4-14, 4-10 SAC)
Location: The Quillen Court in the David J. Prior Convocation Center
HOW IT HAPPENED
- UVA Wise opened the game on an 11-4 run, extending the lead to nine points a few minutes later on a
Patrick Shelley basket. The lead remained around that mark for several minutes before Tusculum made a run to tie the game at 21-21. The rest of the half saw the teams trade leads with neither having more than a three-point advantage. A pair of Pioneer free throws with 20 seconds left made the score 33-33 at the half.
- Tusculum came out roaring in the second half, opening with a 12-2 run to grab a double-digit lead. The Cavs would battle back over the next few minutes, with a pair of baskets by
Zy'Ever Wingfield cutting the deficit to 52-47with 13:38 left. The Pioneers pushed the lead back to ten a minute later, only to see Alexander Cummins and
Kolier Pruett spark a furious comeback that erased the Pioneer lead. A three-pointer by
Lav Cvetkovic' gave UVA Wise the lead, and they would extend it to six. Tusculum kept chipping away and eventually tied it at 69-69 with 2:29 left in regulation.
Evan Ramsey hit a hook shot to put UVA Wise ahead by two, but TU answered back thirty seconds later. Both teams had two tries in the final 1:11, but neither could score and the game went to overtime.
- The Cavs won the overtime tip but were unable to score on the opening possession. They got a defensive stop and both teams had attempts before Shelley was fouled. He hit both. After a one-and-done by Tusculum,
Bradley Dean hit a driving layup and was fouled. He hit the free throw, putting UVA Wise ahead 76-71 with 3:40 remaining. Tusculum cut the lead to three on their next opportunity, but that was as close as they would come as the Cavs would go 4-4 from the free throw line in the final 18 seconds to seal the 86-78 win.
- Tusculum was led by Bryce Jackson's 25 points and a double-double (22 points, 14 rebounds) from Akeem Odusipe.
GETTING WISE
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Evan Ramsey led four Cavs in double figures with his fifth double-double of the season as he had 20 points and 12 rebounds. He also led all players with three blocks.
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Patrick Shelley and
Lav Cvetkovic' had 15 points apiece.
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Bradley Dean had 11 points and dished out a game-high six assists.
- The Cavs outshot the Pioneers 47.8%-43.9% from the field.
UP NEXT
UVA Wise travels to Coker this Saturday looking for revenge for their 103-93 loss to the Cobras back in November. Coker is currently 12-5 overall and 8-5 in the SAC after defeating Newberry earlier this evening.
