Men’s basketball team wins double overtime thriller at Alma, 96-88

ALMA, Mich. – The Olivet College men's basketball won a hard-fought double overtime thriller over Alma College, 96-88, in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) contest today at Art Smith Arena.

Final Score: Olivet 96, Alma 88 (2OT)
Location: Art Smith Arena; Alma, Michigan
Records: Alma 1-12 overall, 0-4 MIAA; Olivet 5-10 overall, 2-2 MIAA

• The Scots led 14-5 at the 16:18 mark of the opening half. The Comets answered with 13 straight points to go up 18-14. Olivet maintained the advantage until Alma went ahead 24-23 with 6:49 left until halftime. A 14-5 Olivet run made the score 37-29 at halftime.
• The Scots chipped away at their deficit and eventually took a 41-40 lead a little more than five minutes into the second half. The Comets responded and went ahead by four points, 49-45. Alma came back with a 10-2 spurt to take its own four-point lead. The Scots pushed their lead to six points before six consecutive Olivet points tied the game at 59-59.
• Senior Eddie Thigpen made a basket to put the Comets ahead before an Alma jumper leveled the score. Senior Ryan Robinette gave Olivet a 63-61 lead with 2:21 left in regulation. The Scots answered with a basket on its next possession to tie the score. With 0.5 seconds remaining, Alma had a chance to score the go-ahead points but missed both free throws.
• In the first overtime period, the Scots seized a four-point lead 71-67. The Comets used a 7-0 run to go up 74-71 with 23 seconds left. An Alma basket made the score 74-73 before Thigpen drained two free throws to put Olivet back ahead by three points. The Scots sank two free throws to cut their deficit back to a single point. Senior Derrick Johnson split two tosses from the charity stripe. After calling a timeout, an Alma player went the length of the court and made a basket to send the game to another extra period, with the score knotted at 77-77.
• The Scots made the first basket of the second overtime period. Johnson responded with a three-pointer to put Comets ahead 80-79. Olivet did not trail for the rest of the extra period, leading by as many as eight points on three occasions. The Comets made all eight of their free throw attempts in the final minute to seal their win.
• The shooting statistics were nearly identical, as Olivet made 31-of-80 baskets (38.8 percent) compared to 32-of-81 (39.5 percent) for the Scots. Both teams made five shots from distance. The difference in the game was the Comets drained 29-of-36 (80.6 percent) free throws to 19-of-29 (65.5 percent) for Alma.

• Thigpen led all players with 31 points on 11-of-22 shooting from the floor and 7-of-10 from the charity stripe.
• Johnson finished with 15 points.
• Robinette and junior Noah Wiswary each scored 13 points.
• Senior Dane Vos grabbed a game-best 13 rebounds.

• "It's always nice to learn more from a win than a loss ... but the roller coaster continues with this team," said Olivet head coach Sam Hargraves. "I've got to give credit to Alma for playing hard and competing today. They were the more aggressive team most of the game.
• "I am very proud of the way we grinded it out, and how we played very well in the second overtime. Until we figure out how to compete at our highest level, and stop worrying about what our opponent is doing, we won't know what to expect on any given night."

• Xavier Bargesser scored 21 points.
• Brandon Rake had 17 points to go along with a team-leading 12 rebounds.
• Landen Moore-Pierce and Brandon Whiteside tallied 16 and 11 points, respectively.

• The Comets host MIAA rival Albion College next Wednesday, January 19, at the Cutler Event Center. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.