RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Playing undermanned and without several of their top scorers, the Arkansas Tech men's basketball team displayed a ton of resolve and grit on Thursday night against visiting Southwestern Oklahoma, but ultimately Tech would fall short in overtime, falling to SWOSU by a score of 77-75.
 
The overtime against the Bulldogs (5-9, 4-5 GAC) was the second-straight contest that pressed on beyond regulation time as the Wonder Boys (5-7, 2-4 GAC) played a single overtime game this past Saturday at Ouachita. Unfortunately, the Wonder Boys fell short in that contest as well.
 
On Thursday night, the Wonder Boys got off to a great start offensively, especially from three-point range. Through the first five and a half minutes of the game, the Wonder Boys made four trifectas and were 4-of-6 from long range.
 
That hot start shooting the ball gave the Wonder Boys the early advantage.
 
Just over halfway through the first half, Tech grabbed a double-digit lead and with 4:33 left in the opening stanza, the Wonder Boys took their largest lead of the game at 11 points, 31-20. SWOSU was able to cut the deficit down to a single point with just over a minute left in the first half, but the Wonder Boys were a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe over the remaining time and carried a five-point lead into the break.
 
The Wonder Boys remained in front for much of the second half as well, but several times around the midway part, SWOSU pulled within a point once more. Each time, the Wonder Boys were able to stave off the Bulldogs, but at the 8:56 mark, SWOSU finally flipped the score in their favor on a three-pointer by Jaylan Williams.
 
From that point on through the remainder of the second half, the game was closely-contested as the lead changed hands five more times while the score was tied twice.
 
The wildest sequence during that stretch the Wonder Boys and Bulldogs trade three-pointers, flipping the lead on each make. The first of those was a three-pointer by Tech's Cameron Kennedy at the 5:46 mark and turned a 63-61 SWOSU lead into a 64-63 Tech lead. The Bulldogs answered back shortly thereafter with a three-pointer at the 4:57 mark. Just about a minute of game action later, Cejay Mann buried a three-pointer to give Tech a 67-66 lead with 4:08 to play.
 
Tech remained out in front over the next three or so minutes, but with just over a minute left, SWOSU tied the game up on an old-fashioned three-point play.
 
After a miss on their ensuing possession, the Wonder Boys got the ball back with a chance to take the game's final shot thanks to a SWOSU turnover.
 
The initial final shot drew iron, but was cleaned up by BJ Johnson, who put the ball back in for what would have been the game-winning basket. Upon video review, however, it was determined that the shot by Johnson did not clear his hands by the time the buzzer went off, sending the game to overtime.
 
In the overtime period, both teams battled to gain control early with neither team able to take the lead through the first two and a half minutes.
 
The first points of overtime went to the Wonder Boys on a pair of free throws by Kevin Howard, but SWOSU was able to answer immediately back to tie the game at 73-all.
 
That score held until the 1:08 mark of OT when SWOSU split a pair of free throws. The Wonder Boys missed their answering shot on the other end and with the clock now under 30 seconds, Tech was forced into fouling the Bulldogs.
 
Down the stretch, the Bulldogs were 3-of-4 from the free throw line to help ice the game away and give SWOSU the aforementioned 77-75 win.
 
Statistically, seven Wonder Boys scored in the game and leading the way was Mann with a career-high 26 points. On the night, Mann was 8-of-18 shooting with all eight makes coming from long range. He was also 2-of-2 from the free throw line. Kennedy was next in scoring and added 16 points. He hit four three-pointers himself as Mann and Kennedy combined for 12 of Tech's season-high 14 three-pointers.
 
Calvin Allen made his first career start as a Wonder Boy and played 30 minutes. Caden Hale came off the bench and scored a career-high eight points. He was a perfect 3-of-3 from the field and was 2-of-2 from three-point range.
 
The Wonder Boys will now prepare for another home game this coming Saturday afternoon against Northwestern Oklahoma. Tip-off for the game is scheduled for about 3 p.m. inside Tucker Coliseum.