Oilers Defeat Warriors 101-99 In Triple Overtime

The University of Findlay men's basketball team erased a 19-point first half deficit to come from behind and defeat Wayne State University 101-99 in triple overtime on Saturday, February 13 in Detroit, Michigan. The win gives the Oilers a 17-6 record on the season with a 13-5 mark in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC).

The Oilers fell behind 24-10 in the first ten minutes of the game and ended up trailing 45-26 at the break as they hit only 31.8 percent (7-of-22) of their field goal attempts. The Warriors meanwhile scorched the nets, connecting on 72.7 percent (16-of-22) of their shots in the opening period.

The second half was a different story however as the Oilers fought, scratched and clawed their way back into the game.

Down five at 70-65 with under a minute to play, senior guard Marcus Parker canned a three pointer to make the score 70-68 with 53 ticks remaining in the game. After a couple of failed offensive possessions by both teams, junior forward Tyler Sparks tied the game at 70-70 when he converted a lay-up with only three seconds to play as the game would eventually head to overtime.

In overtime, Wayne State began the extra session with six straight points to take a 76-70 lead before Sparks connected on a triple to stop the bleeding with 3:05 showing on the clock.

After another score by the Warriors, Parker hit a pair from the charity stripe but Wayne State quickly answered as they too hit a couple of free throws to make the score 80-75 with 1:11 to play.

Junior center Jason Wehri then made two free throws to make the score 80-77 with only 50 seconds remaining in the extra session. A turnover by the Warriors then gave Findlay the ball back and freshman forward Jack Smith converted a three point play to tie the game at 80-80 with 30 seconds left.

Needing a stop on defense, Findlay got one as Bryan Smothers missed a jumper which sent the game into a second overtime period.

After a couple of baskets by both teams to begin the second extra session, junior guard Nathan Hyde hit a jumper to make the score 88-87 before Ike Udanoh connected on a three point play to give Wayne State a 90-88 lead with 45 seconds left.

On their next possession, Hyde was fouled and made both of his attempts from the charity stripe to tie the game at 90-90 with 34 seconds remaining.

Needing another stop on defense, Findlay got one as Hyde corralled a rebound and was fouled sending the junior back to the free throw line with 11 seconds left in the period.

Toeing the line, Hyde hit a pair of free throws to give Findlay a two-point lead but Udanoh scored off of an offensive rebound to send the game into a third overtime.

In the third overtime, the Oilers found themselves down 97-94 with 3:26 left but Hyde quickly tied the game as he connected on a triple before Smith hit a lay-up to give Findlay a 99-97 lead with under two minutes to play.

After a basket by the Warriors, Hyde again gave the Oilers a 101-99 lead as he hit a jump shot with 1:05 remaining in the third extra session. Findlay then had a shot clock violation but battled on defense to force a turnover and capture the win.

Hyde led the way as he scored a career-high 34 points on 11-of-20 shooting while Parker contributed 28 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the field.

Hyde drained 9-of-10 shots from the free throw line while Parker connected on 13-of-15 attempts from the charity stripe.

Wehri recorded his first career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds while Smith chipped in nine points off the bench.

As a team, Findlay shot 49.2 percent (31-of-63) from the field as they competed in their first triple overtime game since winning 106-99 at Mercyhurst in 2003. They also forced 21 turnovers and hit a season-high 31-of-39 (79.5%) shots from the charity stripe.

The Warriors, who were led by Smothers' 25 points, shot 58.3 percent (35-of-60) from the field and hit 24-of-26 (92.3%) shots from the free throw line.

The Oilers will be back in action again on Thursday, February 18 when they host Michigan Technological University at 7:30 p.m. in Croy Gymnasium.