Justin Graham’s 3-pointer at the buzzer gave Arkansas Tech University a 103-100 overtime men’s basketball victory over Graceland University in non-conference play at Tucker Coliseum in Russellville on Saturday afternoon.
With the score tied 100-100 and 4.6 seconds remaining in the extra period, Graham received the inbound pass from Branden Williams, dribbled into the front court, pulled up from 24 feet on the right wing and drained the shot that kept the Wonder Boys (3-0) undefeated on the season.
“The thing we talked about during the timeout was we wanted just one shot,” said Arkansas Tech head coach Chad Kline. “We did not want to give (Graceland) a chance to get the ball back. Our worst case scenario was that we would go play another five minutes. We are very fortunate. They had us on the ropes all day long. This early in the season, it was great to see us respond like we did today.”
The Yellowjackets (4-4) led 48-39 at halftime and by as many as 13 points early in the second half.
Arkansas Tech used a 12-0 run over a span of 2:39 to pull even at 59-59 with 13:54 left in regulation. It remained a close game the rest of the way, with neither side able to build more than a five-point lead. The game saw 16 ties and 23 lead changes.
Trevin Woods led the Wonder Boys in scoring with 15 points. Graham finished with 14 points, four rebounds and five assists. Montrell Williams contributed 14 points, four rebounds, four assists, four blocked shots and two steals.
Bennie Lufile added 13 points for the Wonder Boys, 11 of which came after halftime. Alex Brown also had 13 points for Tech, while Branden Williams notched 12 points and seven rebounds.
Jeremy Deemer had a team-high 21 points for Graceland.
Arkansas Tech forced the Yellowjackets into 24 turnovers while committing just 12 of their own.
The Wonder Boys will visit face Oklahoma Baptist University for a 7:30 p.m. Great American Conference contest in Shawnee, Okla., on Thursday, Dec. 1. Radio station KCJC 102.3 FM and www.arkansastechsports.com will have live coverage.
