RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — Closing a nine-point deficit over the final 60 seconds of regulation and picking up a 30-point effort out of Marquis Yates, the Arkansas Tech men's basketball team took No. 9 Minnesota State Moorhead to overtime in the final game of the GAC/NSIC Crossover before ultimately falling 80-78 Saturday evening at Tucker Coliseum.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Trailing or tied for the first six minutes, a 3-pointer by Jerry Owens handed the Wonder Boys (1-1) their first lead of the game over the Dragons (2-0), followed by layups from Bryson Fletcher and DeChriston McKinney to make it a 15-9 advantage with 12:32 left in the first half.
• That lead would last less than two minutes as Moorhead stayed ahead by no more than six the rest of the opening half, heading into the break sporting a 32-27 lead.
• Two straight triples by Nick Wayman first tied things at 32-all in the first 40 seconds of the second half and then handed the lead back to the Wonder Boys with 18:42 left. It was the first of five ties and five lead changes in the second half.
• Another 3-pointer from Yates tied it up again a few minutes later, and two made free throws from the junior moments later put the lead back in the hands of the Wonder Boys. His layup with 14:13 to play made it 42-40 Tech.
• The Dragons took control for a long stretch from that point, taking a 10-point lead with 1:24 to play, but the Wonder Boys closed regulation on a 13-3 run.
• Yates scored all 13 of those points, hitting three 3-pointers, a layup and two freebies to close the gap, including the game-tying 3-pointer with just six seconds left on the clock.
• A trey from Freddy Lee was the first points of overtime, and a free throw out of Andrew Guillory made it 78-77 in favor of Tech, but a running layup just before the buzzer handed the Dragons the game-winning points.

NOTABLES

• Yates scored 28 of his game-high 30 in the second half, sinking 9-of-17 shots from the field, and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the line.
• Wayman picked up his first double-double of the season, pocketing 10 points and 10 rebounds, helping lead a 59-46 advantage on the glass for the Wonder Boys.
• Lee followed up his game-winning shot from Friday night with five points and five slick assists Saturday, including three big offensive rebounds.
• The Wonder Boys shot 10-of-20 from beyond the arc in the second half, helping Tech nearly double its points from before the intermission.
• Once again, 11 Wonder Boys saw time on the court, with nine scoring at least three points. Owens posted nine points, while Guillory added eight and seven rebounds.
• Tobe Okafor and Tyrone Haughton helped patrol the lane, with each big man swatting three Moorhead shots.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

·         MVP – Isaac Sevlie, MSUM

·         Andraz Kavas, Harding

·         Freddy Lee, Tech

·         Aaron Lien, MSUM

·         Skye Warwick, NSU

·         Marquis Yates, Tech

WHO'S NEXT

• The Wonder Boys kick off Great American Conference play this week, going on the road to face Southwestern Oklahoma Thursday.

-FIGHTON-