Purdue Fort Wayne
Oral Roberts
IPFW Falters Down The Stretch and Falls in OT to Oral Roberts, 71-68
2/4/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 4, 2010
Fort Wayne, IN - Oral Roberts sophomore guard Kyron Stokes scored the go-ahead basket with 37 seconds left in overtime Thursday night as Oral Roberts edged IPFW, 71-68.
Stokes' basket broke a 67-67 tie. Junior guard Ben Botts pulled IPFW within one by making a free throw, but ORU sophomore forward Dominique Morrison answered with two free throws for Oral Roberts.
Botts tried to tie it as time expired but his triple was off the mark.
IPFW led by as many 15 points in the second half and by as nine with just over four minutes to play, but Oral Roberts went to a full court press that caused six Mastodon turnovers and allowed the Golden Eagles to tie it on a Stokes' tip-in.
Oral Roberts (14-10, 9-3 SL) didn't take their first lead of the game until the 3:44 mark of overtime.
IPFW missed opportunities at the free-throw line to put the game away in regulation and in the extra session. The Mastodons also turned the ball over a season-high 24 times, 16 in the second half.
Freshman guard Warren Niles scored 21 points to lead the Golden Eagles, while Morrison added 15.
Senior forward Deilvez Yearby had 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Mastodons. It was his seventh double-double of the season. Yearby also blocked five shots in the game which gives him a season total of 56, breaking the school record for blocks in a season he shared with former Mastodon center David Simon (54).
Four other 'Dons scored in double-digits. Sophomore forward Trey McCorkle added 14 points, Botts added 12, while junior guard Zach Plackemeier had 11 and senior guard Nick Daniels finished with 10.
IPFW outrebounded Oral Roberts 38-35 and shot 44.4% from the floor. ORU finished the night at 43.8%.
The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for the Mastodons. IPFW (11-11, 6-6 SL) returns to action on Saturday afternoon, hosting Centenary College in the back half of a women's/men's double header at the Coliseum. The women's tip-off at 1:30 p.m. followed by the men's game at 4:00 p.m. Saturday is also the third annual Pink Out for breast cancer awareness.
~Dons~
