COLUMBUS, Miss. – Cam Smith canned a three-point basket at the end of regulation to force overtime and The W men's basketball played some solid defense in the extra period of a 62-60 non-conference win at home over Millsaps College. The Owls (3-6) snapped a two-game skid with the win over the Majors (2-7).
 
Neither team was able to create any separation, with the largest lead being six points. The score was tied 11 times and there were 13 lead changes. And Millsaps held one of those six point advantages, 52-46, with 1:46 left in regulation.
 
With just under a minute left, MUW's Chris Evans went to the free throw line four times, converting three chances, to draw The W to within a single possession, 52-49. A missed trey by the Majors gave MUW the ball with 18 seconds showing.
 
As the clock ticked down, Dariun Doss spotted Smith open in front of the Owls' bench. Smith elevated and calmly canned the three-pointer with just two seconds remaining. A desperation heave by MC was short and The W headed to its first overtime of the season.
 
In the extra period, the Owls did not allow the Majors a field goal made in the final 4:30 minutes. Millsaps did, however, make six free throws. The sixth charity toss knotted the game at 60-60 with 58 seconds to play.
 
Trent Walker made one of two free throws for The W with 46 seconds left to give his team the one-point lead. That was followed by an opportunistic steal by Eric Bass Jr. and an eventual foul on Evans, who made the back end of the two-shots and gave the Owls the 62-60 lead with 10 seconds to play.
 
After a Millsaps timeout, the visitors missed an awkward layup attempt as the clock wound down. Evans corralled the rebound at the horn, allowing MUW to exhale and celebrate the win.
 
Evans led the Owls with 18 points on a 4-of-11 shooting day. But Evans' was deft at the foul line, going 9-for-12, while also grabbing five rebounds.
 
While no other MUW players had double-digit scoring, Head Coach Dean Burrows' crew got lots of help from various quarters. Bass Jr., Walker and James Dukes all had seven points, with Smith and Tyson Smithey booking five each. In all, 11 different Owls scored in the game.
 
The Dukes brothers – James and Josh – each pulled down seven rebounds (and James getting all three MUW blocked shots), as did Smith. But it was Doss who had the "Windex game," cleaning the glass to the tune of a game-high 14 rebounds.
 
The W will host another non-conference bout on Tuesday (Dec. 17/ 7 p.m.) versus Southeastern Baptist College at Pohl Gym.