Cougars MBB Erase 15-point Deficit, Fall in Overtime to Northern Colorado

Riley Abercrombie put Northern Colorado ahead with a turnaround jumper with 42 seconds left in overtime, and Chicago State came up just short on the game-winning attempt down low as the Bears pulled out 78-77 overtime victory over the Cougars in the Mayan Division of the Men's Cancun Challenge

The Bears (3-2) will play Radford on Wednesday for the Mayan Division title; the Cougars (1-5) face Morgan State in the third-place game.

Zach Bloch hit two 3-pointers in the extra session to help UNC's cause, with Noble Crawford putting Chicago State up 77-76 with 1:40 to go. The Bears turned the ball over with about 10 seconds left, but the Cougars were unable to convert at the buzzer.

Northern Colorado took a 15-point lead early in the second half, but Chicago State resolutely approached the deficit and pulled ahead 62-61 with 4:56 to go on a layup from Wesley Cardet. A outback from Brent Davis gave Chicago State a 70-67 lead with nine seconds to go in regulation, but Dejour Reaves hit a 3-pointer at :06 to tie the game and send it to overtime.

Reaves had 24 points for UNC; Saint Thomas scored 22 points to go with 10 rebounds and Abercrombie added 12 points. Cardet scored 22 points for Chicago State; Jahsean Corbett added 12 points and Deshawn John-Charles tallied 11 points. 

Northern Colorado had 20 turnovers but finished with a 37-31 edge in  rebounds