Patriots Win Fifth Straight in Overtime Thriller
February 7, 2008

CLARKSVILLE, Ark.--The University of Texas at Tyler men’s basketball team swept the season series with Ozarks for the first time in program history on Thursday night in Clarksville, but had to go overtime to get the 88-83 win. The win was the fifth straight for the Patriots and is the longest winning streak of the season.

Despite leading for the majority of the first half, the Patriots allowed the Eagles to outscore them 16 to four in the final six minutes of the stanza. As a result, Ozarks led 38-30 at the break.

In the second half, the Patriots attempted to battle back, but trailed by 12 points with 12 minutes to play. Then, things begin to fall into place for UT Tyler, who ended the half on a 25-13 run. However, despite regaining the lead late in the game the Patriots trailed by two with just 11 seconds to play. A foul by senior Marlon Hill (Port Arthur, Texas) would send Ozarks freshman Andre Williams (San Antonio, Texas) to the line to shoot a pair of free throws. Williams would hit the first one, but miss the second to put his team up by three. UT Tyler senior Patrick Branche (Houston, Texas) pulled down the rebound after Williams’ miss with just eight seconds left to give his team one final chance. With two seconds on the clock, Patriot junior Anthony Reese (Longview, Texas) nailed a three to send the game into overtime.

In overtime, the Patriots trailed early but fought their way back to lead by three with 19 seconds left. Out of desperation Ozarks would foul and sent Patriot senior Jeff Cotton (Allen, Texas) to the free throw line. Cotton would learn from Eagles earlier mistake, knocking down both shots and sealing the win for the Patriots.

Senior Brandon Weasby (Houston, Texas) led the UT Tyler with 19 points on the night, while Branche and Reese followed closely behind with 18 a piece. Ozarks senior Habeeb Kareem (Houston, Texas) led the Eagles with a game-high 20 points.

With the win, the Patriots now stand at 11-10 overall and 10-6 in the East Division of the American Southwest Conference. The loss drops Ozarks to 8-11 on the year and 5-10 in the ASC East.

UT Tyler will now take a much deserved seven days off and return to action on February 14 when they travel to Longview to take on LeTourneau at 7:30 p.m.

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