GREENEVILLE, TN -- UVA Wise came from eleven points down in the final three minutes to force overtime on a
Bradley Dean three-pointer. Then Tusculum returned the favor and forced a second overtime. Then, just for fun, they battled to a 107-107 tie to force a third overtime. In the end, the Highland Cavaliers wore down the Pioneers and escaped Pioneer Arena with the 121-115 South Atlantic Conference win in triple overtime and the season sweep of the Pioneers.
Bradley Dean (37 points) and
Evan Ramsey (35) combined for 72 of UVA Wise's 121 points.
It was the second triple overtime game in two seasons for the Cavs, who also defeated Limestone on Senior Day last season 121-119. This game, with numerous replays, took longer to complete as it lasted a few minutes shy of three hours.
The win, combined with losses by Carson-Newman, Coker, and Anderson, moves the Cavs into a tie for third with Carson-Newman in the SAC standings with one game left to play. Should both teams finish tied for third, the Cavs and Eagles split in the regular season and the tiebreaker goes to the Cavs courtesy of their eleven point win over league-leader Lincoln Memorial last Thursday.
The Cavs also entered the game ranked ninth in the NCAA Regional Rankings, which came out earlier in the day. Of teams ranked above them, USC Aiken, Carson-Newman, and Coker all lost tonight, improving UVA Wise's odds of making their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Result: UVA Wise 121, Tusculum 115, 3 Overtimes
Records: UVA Wise (18-9, 15-8 SAC); Tusculum (6-21, 6-17 SAC)
Location: Greeneville, TN | Pioneer Arena
HOW IT HAPPENED
- UVA Wise opened the game with a 12-2 run. Tusculum then went on a run of their own to cut the lead to 12-9 with 15:18 left in the first half. The Cavs pulled back ahead by eight via a layup by Ramsey and a three-pointer by Dean. Another three pointer by
Anderson Cummins put UVA Wise up by nine a couple minutes later. The Pioneers fought back with a 12-2 run of their own and took the lead, eventually extending it to 42-31 with less than two minutes remaining. At the half Tusculum led 48-38.
- The Cavs came out in the second half and managed to get to the free throw line early and used several free throws to cut the lead to four points. For the next 10 minutes the Pioneers kept the lead between four and eight points and eventually extended it to 83-72 with 3:15 left. The Cavs then manufactured a 12-2 run on the back of packing the ball into the paint and stingy defense. With the score at 85-82, the Pioneers fouled with 13 seconds left, which had the effect of stopping any three pointers. Dean hit both free throws to cut the lead to one. On the next possession UVA Wise fouled Bryce Jackson, who hit both with seven seconds remaining and put the lead back at three. The Cavs inbounded the ball to Dean, who dribbled to about three feet behind the arc through some traffic and buried the three-point dagger with three seconds left and two TU players' hands in his face. The Pioneers could not get a shot off and the game went to overtime tied at 87-87.
- A pair of Ramsey layups put the Cavs ahead by four points with 3:32 left in the overtime period. The Cavs eventually extended the lead to five points and essentially traded baskets with TU until the Pioneers' TJ Printup hit a big three pointer of his own with five seconds left to send the game to a second overtime.
- Neither team could get more than a two point advantage in the second overtime, with
Lav Cvetkovic' tying the game at 107-107 with 55 seconds remaining. The Cavs forced a Tusculum turnover and Dean once again tried to score as time expired, but this time Printup blocked the pullup jumper attempt, forcing a third overtime.
- The teams essentially traded baskets and free throws until the 2:37 mark, when Cvetkovic' buried a three-pointer to give the Cavs the 114-113 lead. After a TU turnover caused by Dean, he found Cummins open for a three-pointer, putting the Cavs up by four with 2:08 left. That score stood until less than a minute left, when Dean made a layup and put the game out of reach for the Pioneers. They would cut it to four points on a basket by Jackson, but Dean would be fouled and hit two free throws to make the lead 121-115. A three-pointer by the Pioneers on the next possession was blocked by
Patrick Shelley and the Cavaliers would hold the ball as time expired.
- The loss spoils a 30 point outing by Jackson and a career-high 24 point night by Printup. Taj Kimber also scored 24 points, Malachi Hale had 21, and Denaj Kimber ended the game with eleven points.
GETTING WISE
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Bradley Dean led the Cavs with 37 points, ten assists, and a career-high six steals. He was 12-21 from the field, 5-7 from three-point range, and 8-10 from the free throw line.
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Evan Ramsey also had a big night with a career-high 35 points. He also had a game-high 15 rebounds. He was 13-22 from the field and 9-11 from the free throw line.
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Patrick Shelley had 14 points and tied his career high of 15 rebounds.
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Lav Cvetkovic' also scored 14 points.
- The Cavs were out-shot by TU 52 percent to 47 percent from the field and 48 percent to 42 percent from three-point range, but a 28-37 performance from the free throw line negated much of that advantage. UVA Wise also utterly dominated the boards by a 56-39 margin.
UP NEXT
The Cavs will close out the season when they travel to Catawba Saturday afternoon in a game with both implications for UVA Wise's SAC Tournament seeding and NCAA Tournament aspirations. Tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.
