SHERMAN, Texas - The Austin College men's basketball team trailed by double-digits early in the second half, but the 'Roos stormed back and pulled out a 79-78 overtime victory against visiting Colorado College on Friday evening in Hughey Gym. The 'Roos are now 7-9 overall and 3-5 in Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play.
Joshua Joe scored 16 of his team-high 24 points in the second half and overtime, and Tristan Dick scored 13 of his 19 in the game's final 25 minutes to lead the 'Roos to the victory over the Tigers. Austin College had a huge game at the free throw line, hitting 30-of-35 attempts as a team, with Dick first knocking down a foul shot to square things at 70-70 with 10 seconds left in regulation to force the extra period, and the senior again knocked down a free throw in the closing seconds of overtime, this time with seven seconds on the clock, to provide the game-winning point.
Colorado College led 34-30 at halftime, forcing 11 Austin College turnovers while limiting the 'Roos to 29.2% shooting in the opening frame. The Tigers came out strong to start the second half, pushing the margin to 41-32 early, and after a Jackson Rennie three pointer to make it 41-35, Colorado College used an 11-5 run to widen that margin to 52-40 on a triple from Dinari Boykin at the 14:28 mark. Austin College slowly started to chip away at the deficit, and a bucket by Rennie pulled the 'Roos to within two points at 58-56 with 6:18 left. Jordan Hudgins squared things up at 63 apiece on a layup with just over four minutes to play, and Joe hit a pair of free throws and followed with a basket to put the 'Roos up 67-63 with 2:44 left to play.
Boykin scored with 40 seconds left to put Colorado College back on top 70-69, but Dick drew a foul in the closing seconds and knocked down one of two to send the game to overtime. The Tigers took a 78-75 lead with 1:09 left in the extra period, but Austin College closed strong with four unanswered points in the closing minute, and Dick made 3-of-4 from the stripe in the last 32 seconds to give the 'Roos the win.
Joe was 10-of-10 from the line and 7-of-16 from the field to get his 24 points while adding seven rebounds, and Dick hit 5-of-8 from the floor and 9-of-13 from the stripe. He also pulled down 11 rebounds in the victory, and Rennie came off the bench to hit three triples, finishing with 14 points. Boykin led all scorers with 26 points and also posted a game-best 12 rebounds.