SPRING ARBOR, Mich. – The Spring Arbor University men's basketball team overcame a sluggish start against Taylor University, erasing a 20-point deficit, but ultimately fell to the Trojans 80-76 in overtime on Tuesday night.
It was the third overtime loss this season for the Cougars as they slipped to 6-11 overall and 0-5 in the Crossroads League. Meanwhile, the Trojans earned their first road win of the year and improved to 9-8 with a 3-2 mark in league play.
Taylor threatened to break the game open early hitting 10 of its first 15 shots to jump out to a 26-6 lead just over seven minutes into the contest.
The Cougars defense settled in, however, and limited TU to just 3-for-14 shooting the remainder of the period as the offense slowly began chipping away at the deficit.
Trailing by 13 with 4:15 remaining in the half, senior Peter Barry led SAU on an 8-0 run, capped by a Luke Barber three-pointer with six seconds left, to close the gap to five, 38-33, at halftime.
The Cougars continued to claw their way back in the second half, and used another 8-0 run midway through the period to grab their first lead of the game, 49-47, with 11:46 to play.
The two teams would go back and forth the rest of the way, trading the lead 12 times in the second half. With just over a minute remaining, junior Caleb Hogans knocked down a big three to put SAU on top 65-64, but the Trojans would answer with a triple of their own to retake the lead. However, Hogans would bury two clutch free throws in the closing seconds to force overtime.
After a Taylor free throw broke a 75-75 tie in the final minute of the extra period, Hogans had a shot at a potential game-winner but his attempt would come up empty. The Trojans sealed the game at the charity stripe hitting 4-of-4 free throws down the stretch.
Taylor shot at a 45 percent (26-for-58) clip on the night, including 12-for-29 from behind the arc, compared to SAU's 38 percent (24-for-63). Spring Arbor dominated the glass, posting a 46-31 advantage in rebounds.
Five Cougars scored in double figures, including Hogans who finished with 19. Sophomore Zach Medendorp and senior Greg Hamilton followed with 13 points and six rebounds each. Barry narrowly missed a double-double with 12 points and eight boards while Barber chipped in 10 points and three steals.
Up next, Spring Arbor will face three straight Top 25 ranked teams beginning with No. 4 Marian University (15-2, 3-2 CL) in Indianapolis on Saturday, Jan. 9 at 3 p.m.
Men's Basketball Contact: Chris Bauman | 517-750-6504 | christopher.bauman@arbor.edu
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