GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The No. 15-ranked Indiana Tech men's basketball team fell to No. 16-ranked University of Saint Francis (Ind.), 111-109, in overtime in the first game of the Cornerstone University Classic at Mol Arena.
The Warriors got out to a 17-6 lead over their crosstown rivals in the first seven minutes of the game, but the Cougars battled back from a double-digit deficit to make it a four-point game at 25-21 with eight minutes left in the half. An 11-0 run from Tech grew their advantage to 39-23 over the next four minutes while they took a 50-44 lead into the locker room at the half.
Saint Francis kept hanging out in the second half as they would not allow the Warriors to build the lead back to double-digits and cut the deficit to 63-62 with 13:54 on the clock following a 7-2 run. The Orange and Black grew the lead back up to nine points over the next four minutes, but the Cougars battled back to take a 78-77 lead at the 6:40 mark.
The final five minutes of regulation would be a back-and-forth affair between the two Summit City foes. A pair of free throws from the Cougars with five seconds left gave USF a 94-91 lead, but
Dylan Phair drew a foul with three seconds left to go to the line in the double bonus. After missing the first attempt, Phair would intentionally miss the second shot and the rebound found its way into the hands of
Edmond Early, Jr., who drained a three-pointer to send the game into overtime.
The two teams would trade ties and leads in the extra session that would again come down to the final possession. After a
Joel Wincowski layup tied the game up at 109 with 12 seconds left, the Cougars had a three-point attempt blocked by
Darnei Hairston, but the rebound found the hands of Cougars' guard Austin Compton, who nailed a jumper at the buzzer just inside the arc to give USF the win.
Phair finished the game with a career-high 29 points while Wincowski had 27 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Early added 16 points off the bench
Tech (0-3) returns to action Saturday against Taylor University in the final game of the Cornerstone University Classic. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. from Mol Arena.
