The University of Regina's men's basketball team led by as many as 14 points in the second half, but couldn't hang on as Manitoba came back for a 90-88 overtime win on Saturday at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport.
The Cougars looked to be in control of Saturday's contest after taking a 12-point lead into the final quarter, but Manitoba fought back. The Bisons still faced a double-digit deficit with under six minutes to go, but ended the fourth on a 9-2 run capped by a pair of Wyatt Anders free throws with 25 seconds left to force an extra period.
In overtime, Manitoba jumped out to a five-point lead – its biggest of the ball game – before
Jonathan Tull scored five consecutive points to make it a tie game with a minute and a half remaining. The teams then traded missed triples before Amarjit Basi hit a three-pointer from the top of the arc to put Manitoba up for good. The Cougars had a decent look at a potential game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer, but
Travis Sylvestre's shot from the corner hit the back iron to seal the win for Manitoba.
All five starters hit double figures in scoring for Manitoba (3-1) led by Justus Alleyn's 20 points. Andre Arruda had 17 points, while Jonathan Alexander scored 16 and both Anders and Basi ended up with 15. Anders also pulled down 12 rebounds to tie for the game high and led all players with four assists.
Brandon Tull led the Cougars with 22 points and also had eight rebounds, with
Will Tallman collecting a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds while playing 44 of the game's 45 minutes.
Jonathan Tull ended up with 18 points for the U of R, which falls to 1-3 on the season with the loss.
For the second straight night, both teams had multiple players foul out. Arruda, Alexander, and Amir Ali all fouled out for Manitoba, while rookie
Zach Mihalicz and both Tull brothers fouled out for the Cougars.
Manitoba hosts Brandon (0-4) next weekend in Winnipeg, while the Cougars will prepare to host a Calgary team which – along with Victoria – is among the only two undefeated teams in Canada West's Pioneer Division.
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