A Shippensburg three-pointer with four seconds remaining on the clock sent Wilmington University's men's basketball game into overtime in which the Red Raiders prevailed, 80-75, on Wednesday night at the Heiges Field House.
Tied at 48-48, the Wildcats used a 15-5 run to grab a 10-point advantage with 4:58 remaining in regulation, but the Red Raiders (3-0) capitalized on a missed foul shot with 17 seconds to play to tie the game down the stretch.
Valentino Thompson went to the line with the Wildcats leading 68-65 with 17 seconds to play, but missed the front end of the 1-and-1 to give the Red Raiders a chance. Following a Shippensburg timeout, Jay Hardy sank a three-pointer with four seconds showing on the clock to send the game into overtime.
The Red Raiders then went on to score the first seven points of the overtime period to grab a 75-68 lead with 2:32 to play in the extra period. Back-to-back jumpers from Ta'Vaune Griffin and Sam Sanders had the Wildcats deficit to 77-75 with 32 seconds to play, but Shippensburg's Abe Massaley hit 3-of-4 from the foul line while the Wildcats went 0-for-2 from the line and 0-for-1 from beyond the three-point arc in the final moments.
Shippensburg scored the first seven points of the contest before the Wildcats battled back throughout the first half. A layup from Dylan Edgar gave the Red Raiders its largest lead of the first half, 30-20, with 5:10 to play before the break.
But the Wildcats went on a run of their own, scoring six straight and using an 11-2 run to get to within a single point. Sanders scored nine of the 11 points in the Wilmington run, going 4-for-4 from the floor including a made three-pointer. Thompson hit a three pointer with 12 seconds to play before the break to send the Wildcats into the break only trailing by a single point, 35-34.
Griffin gave the Wildcats a lead with their first possession of the second half, getting two offensive rebounds before putting in his own miss for the 36-35 lead.
Shippensburg then sprinted to a seven points lead as late as 15:21 remaining in regulation before the Wildcats made another run of their own.
Tyaire Ponzo-Meek hit a three to start a 7-0 run to tie the game before hitting another three-pointer to give the visitors a 51-50 lead with 11:55 to play.
Leading 54-52, the Wildcats used a 9-1 run to take their largest lead of the game, 63-53, capped by a layup from Sanders with 4:58 remaining in regulation.
A quick 8-0 run brought the Red Raiders back into the contest before they tied the match at 65-65 with 1:38 showing on the scoreboard. Kevin Ohen hit 1-of-2 from the foul line before Rashaun Rasheed put in a layup to give the Wildcats a three point lead with 33 seconds remaining.
Sanders led the Wildcats with 21 points off the bench, shooting 10-of-18 from the floor. Griffin added 12 points on 4-for-7 shooting while also hitting 4-for-5 from the foul line. Ohen chipped in with 11 points off the bench while also grabbing six rebounds.
The Wildcats were unable to get all they could from 24 Red Raider turnovers, as they only got 24 points off the giveaways. Wilmington only gave up 10 turnovers, leading to 13 Shippensburg points.
Wilmington shot 39 percent from the floor (30-for-77), but only hit 9-of-19 from the foul line for the contest. Shippensburg shot 54.5 percent from the floor while taking 22 fewer shot than the Wildcats (30-for-55).
The Wildcats remain on the road for two more contests before they open their 2014-15 home schedule on November 30. The Wildcats begin their Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference schedule on Tuesday, November 25 at the University of the Sciences. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m.