Late Comeback, No. 4 Firestorm Go To 7-0 With Overtime Win
Klamath Falls, Ore.- Down eight with 35 seconds to play in regulation, Arizona Christian forced overtime and beat Southern Oregon on Friday afternoon. Lorenzo Wright made the tying three pointer with four seconds left in regulation and iced the game with free throws in the extra session.
Game Info
- Game score: Arizona Christian – 93, Southern Oregon – 89 (OT)
- Records: Arizona Christian – 7-0, Southern Oregon – 4-1
- NAIA Top 25 ranking: Arizona Christian – 4, Southern Oregon – not ranked
- Location: Danny Miles Court, Oregon Tech, Klamath Falls, OR
ACU Stats For The Day
- Anthony Howell – 24 points
- Wright – 14 points
- Dominic Gonzalez – 13 points
- Jalik Dunkley – 13 points
Inside the Box Score
- Four plus minutes into the game the teams created two ties and two lead changes
- Down 7-4, ACU went on a 13-0 run (Dunkley- four points, Wright- first three pointer of night)
- SOU took a single point lead with 90 seconds left in the half
- Howell scored the last four points for ACU in the first half for a 37-36 lead
- The largest second half lead was nine points after a Wright three pointer
- The Red Raiders came back and were up 77-69 with 35 seconds left
- Gonzalez scored on a layup and missed the “and one” but Dunkley grabbed the rebound and then buried a three pointer
- After a SOU turnover, Wright let the game tying three fly with just four seconds left
- In overtime with 47 seconds left, the score was tied 89-89
- Howell sank two free throws for the lead
- Another SOU turnover allowed Wright to put the game out of reach with two free throws
- The 7-0 start for ACU ties their second best start ever (2018-19, 2020-21)
Thoughts from Coach Rutter
“When you stay positive and battle all the way to the buzzer, sometimes, things can break your way and that is what happened tonight. Thirty-five seconds left down eight and the ball didn’t cross half court again. Some great effort defensively and Jalik and Lorenzo hit some huge shots.”
“The free throw disparity is the story of the game (ACU missed 17 free throws Southern Oregon 19-23 from the line) and something we need to improve on. You don’t win many on the road doing that so we certainly consider ourselves fortunate.”
Up Next
On Saturday, the Firestorm will face NAIA number 18 Oregon Teach at 8:30 pm (Arizona)/ 7:30 pm (Pacific).
