Men's Basketball Outlasts Springfield 66-62 in Overtime Thriller

Worcester, MA --- Junior Robert Hunter (St. Louis, MO) drained seven of his team's 11 points in overtime to help lead Worcester State to a 66-62 triumph over Springfield in non-conference men's basketball action this evening at the Lancer Gymnasium.

In the first ever meeting between the two squads, Hunter finished with 17 points on an eight-for-11 shooting effort from the field (73 percent) to go with four boards, four swipes and a trio of helpers. 

The Blue and Gold (6-3) were also paced by junior Dane Jobst (Athol, MA) who registered 13 points to go along with 19 boards and freshman Alex Lopez (Springfield, MA/Commerce) also added a double-figure scoring effort with 14 points in the victory.

Springfield (8-3) was paced on offense by senior Alex Berthiaune (Springfield, MA/St. Michaels) who turned in a great all-around performance off the bench with 20 points, eight boards and five assists in just 28 minutes of action. 

Classmate Jordan Rote (Sheffield, MA) chipped in with 14 points and he added a game-best five swipes in the defeat.

Hunter was able to break the 55-55 tie on the first possession of overtime when he was able to covert a lay-up just 15 seconds in. 

With the 59-56 Lancer advantage one minute later, Hunter connected for a two-pointer in the paint to help give the hosts a five point cushion with 3:16 left.

But the Pride were able to climb ahead with a 6-0 spurt highlighted by two baskets from Rote as he made the score 62-61 at the 1:04 mark. 

Senior Kyle Ferreira (Westport, MA) came right back and answered the call for the Lancers with a lay-up and Hunter helped take advantage of a Springfield miscue for the 65-62 lead with 15 seconds remaining. 

After Springfield missed a chance from downtown, Hunter iced the contest as he made it a two-possession game for the final score hitting the front end of a bonus chance.

On the sixth lead change of a back-and-forth second stanza that also saw the score equalized four times, junior Robbie Burke (Cheshire, MA) canned his first attempt from the charity stripe with 1:38 left in regulation for the 54-53 edge. 

Following a timeout, Lopez called his own number and drove to the basket with a field goal for the one-point lead with 22.2 seconds left, but the Pride knotted the score to force the extra session when Berthiaume sank the one-and-one bid before he rang the basket on the second try.

Worcester State had the early 15-11 advantage eight minutes into the contest, but the Pride were sparked by Berthaiume who bookended the charge with a jumper and a pair of free throws in a 17-6 surge to go up 28-21 at the 2:34 mark. 

But Hunter helped key a 6-0 run for the hosts with a pair of buckets in the paint to help the hosts close out the half down, 28-27.

The Lancers finished with a modest 38 percent total from the field (27-for-71) while Springfield wasn't too far behind connecting for 37 percent of their shots (26-for-70). 

But the Pride couldn't even buy a three pointer as they finished zero-for-17 for the game and missed all four of their shots from beyond the arc in overtime. WSU was also three of 16 for the contest from three point land.

Springfield used 13 swipes to force 22 miscues as they ended with the lead in points off turnovers (22-14), points in the paint (46-36) and fast break points (14-8). 

Worcester State dominated the glass (55-43) and using a 22-15 edge on offensive backboards, they were able to secure a 17-13 lead in second-chance points.

WSU ends their first semester of play on a high note and will next take on Albertus Magnus on January 3rd at 7 PM. Springfield will next host Colby as part of the Hampton Inn/Naismith Classic on Nerw Years Day with tip-off scheduled for 5:30 PM.