NASSAU, The Bahamas (Nov. 24, 2019) – After two games and two losses, Morgan State men's basketball team was determined to finally get in the win column on Day 3 of The Island of The Bahamas Showcase. However, today they were denied by Evansville in a triple-overtime thriller at Baha Mar Convention Center.
KJ Riley scored a career-high 36 points including a go-ahead tip-in in the third overtime and Evansville snapped a three-game losing streak with a 115-112 victory over Morgan State in the seventh-place game at the Bahamas Showcase on Sunday.
Riley's follow basket gave the Purple Aces (4-3) a 112-111 lead in the final minute and from there Shamar Givance made 3 of 4 free throws and the Bears one. Morgan State's Sherwyn Devonish-Prince missed a 3-point attempt at the buzzer.
The Bears were just minutes away from salting away a victory, ahead by 11 points with just over 3 minutes remaining, when Riley scored eight points during a 15-5 surge capped by making a double-clutch 3-pointer with 1.5 seconds left to knot the game at 85 apiece.
The first OT ended at 98-all and the second tied at 107.
Artur Labinowicz added 17 points, Givance and Sam Cunliffe 15 each and DeAndre Williams 14 for Evansville.
Morgan State's (3-4) Troy Baxter led the Bears with 30 points (4-7 3FG) and 10 rebounds. Stanley Davis had 21 points (6-8 FT), while Devonish-Prince added 17 points and Peter Sorber chipped in 13 points.
Evansville's bench outscored the Bears by a 44-24 margin and finished the game shooting 56.5 percent (35-62) from the field. The Bears shot 46.9 percent (38-81) and converted 28-for-36 (77.8%) from the free throw line.
Next Up: The Bears will travel to Columbus to tip-off against the Ohio State Buckeyes on Friday, Nov. 29 in St. John Arena.
