TAHLEQUAH – Rogers State capped a rally from a 17-point deficit with a last-second 3-pointer to force overtime and the Hillcats never trailed during the extra period en route to a wild 89-87 win over in-state rival Northeastern State on Saturday at the NSU Event Center.
Four players scored in double figures for NSU (8-14, 3-13 MIAA), which led 65-48 with 11:35 left. Despite Rogers State's (13-9, 10-6) big 14-0 run in the second half, NSU never lost the lead in regulation. A driving layup by
Jaxon Jones put the RiverHawks up 73-71 with 59 seconds left and after a miss by the Hillcats,
Trey Quartlebaum hit two free throws for NSU with 17 seconds left to make it 75-71.
After a quick Rogers State basket, Carlson Hartloff hit two free throws with 10 seconds left. Isacc Johnson's 3-pointer with :03 left pulled Rogers State within 77-76. Hartloff hit two more free throws a second later, but Rodney Battle made a 3-pointer – taken in front of the Rogers State bench – at the buzzer to force overtime.
The Hillcats scored the first four points of overtime and although Quartlebaum's jumper tied the game at 83-83 with 2:29 left in the extra period, NSU didn't score again until :05 remained, when
Seth Pratt's four-point play – a 3-pointer plus a free throw – cut NSU's deficit to 88-87.
Battle then split a pair of free throws for the Hillcats and after a timeout, the RiverHawks weren't able to get off a shot.
Jones finished with 19 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals and never exited the game for NSU – his seventh straight complete game.
Anthony Allen scored 16 points, Quartlebaum had 16 points, five assists and three steals, and Hartloff finished with 12 points for the RiverHawks,
Johnson hit 5 of 7 3-point attempts and scored 29 points to lead Rogers State, with Evan Anderson adding 19 points. The Hillcats shot 12 of 21 (57.1 percent) from 3-point range compared to 7 of 25 (28 percent) for NSU.
NSU will play two games on the road next week, at Missouri Western on Thursday and Northwest Missouri State on Saturday, before returning home to host Newman (Kan.) on Feb. 22.
