BETHANY, Okla. -- After trailing the entire contest, including a 17-5 margin early in the first half, junior DJ Feitl scored a game-tying bucket with 2.5 seconds left before lifting John Brown (16-13, 8-9 SAC) with four points in overtime to a 76-72 victory tonight over Southwestern Christian (Okla.) inside Pickens-Springer Gymnasium.
Senior Max Hopfgartner scored down low to force the games first tie, 62-62, with 3:19 left in the game, but the host Eagles (7-18, 3-14 SAC) received back-to-back triples from Tyler Turner and Robert Rozim for a renewed six-point lead with 59 seconds on the clock.
The Golden Eagles didnt back down, however, as Feitl drove the lane and picked up an and-one on the ensuing possession. Turner scored the final two of his game-high 27 points on the other end with 18 seconds left, forcing a five-point gap and time quickly waning.
Eight seconds later, sophomore Zach English dished out one of his two assists on the night and found junior Griffin Brady in the deep right corner for a triple, allowing JBU to pull within two, 70-68. On the ensuing inbounds, John Brown quickly fouled SCUs Timotis Kuckailis, sending him to the line. Kuckailis missed the front end of a one-and-one and Hopfgartner grabbed the board with nine seconds left.
Quickly pushing up the court, Feitl drove the lane and dropped in a layup with 2.5 seconds left to deadlock the score at 70 apiece. The Eagles held the ball on the inbounds, mandating another five minutes of play.
“Southwestern Christian hit a lot of shots tonight, but we weathered it, pulled together and found a way to win,†said head coach Jason Beschta on his teams six-point, final-minute comeback. “This team has a high level of belief in each other and what we are capable of achieving. I think that has shown itself all year.â€
After hitting 6-of-12 chances from behind the arc in the second half, Southwestern Christian went cold in the overtime session. Feitl dropped in a desperation mid-range jumper to start the frame and, after trading empty possessions, SCU tied the game for the third time after Vladimir Nemcoks jumper fell at the 3:19 mark. That would be the only points the hosts would earn in the extra period.
Hopfgartner completed a beautiful give-and-go with Feitl and finished with a lay-in at the 2:51 mark and Feitl converted a pair at the line with 27 seconds left, handing the Golden Eagles a four-point win, 76-72. SCU finished overtime 0-of-4 from long range and just 1-of-5 from the floor overall.
John Brown is now 8-2 in games decided by five points or less.
“Win or lose, our focus, especially late in the season, has been on being better every game,†Beschta added. “We have been playing our best overall basketball over the last two weeks. We want to keep climbing, keep building so that we are playing our very best basketball at tournament time next week.â€
With Oklahoma Baptist upsetting No. 14 Wayland Baptist (Texas) in Plainview, Texas, tonight, both the Bison and John Brown are still deadlocked for the sixth seed in the tournament. Oklahoma Baptist will face Southwestern Christian and JBU will take on No. 23 Oklahoma City on Saturday (Feb. 28) in the regular season finales. City finished tonight with an 82-78 win at No. 24 Southwestern A.G. (Texas).
Tonights game didnt start well for JBU, which quickly found itself in a 17-5 hole after opening the game 2-of-9 from the floor (22.2 percent). Brady jump-started the John Brown rally with his first triple of the game at the 12:40 mark. Treys continued to fall when Brady hit another which was followed by back-to-back bonus shots from Feitl to cap off a 15-5 run as the Golden Eagles clawed back into contention, 22-20.
“After a sluggish start and several bad stretches, we pulled together to make some important defensive stops coupled with some clutch finishes on the offensive end,†admitted Beschta.
Three Turner triples over a 2:15 span helped the hosts maintain an eight-point lead, 35-27, but two buckets from sophomore Nate Anderson helped JBU stay within a 38-31 deficit at the break.
Down nine, 57-48, English completed an old-fashioned three-point play which propelled the visitors on a 14-5 run over a 4:03 span to tie the game at 62 apiece.
Four of JBUs starters finished in double figures and all barely missed double-doubles. Feitl broke 20 points for the first time in six games with a team-high 24 and added nine rebounds and a team-best six assists. English secured his second-best outing of the season with 17 points and eight rebounds while Brady nailed 3-of-8 attempts from behind the arc for 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Hopfgartner tallied 12 points and eight boards in the win.
Turner poured in a game-high 27 points on 7-of-11 shooting from distance. Rozim added 17 points while Kuckailis pulled down an enormous 17 rebounds to accompany 10 assists to claim the double-double in the losing effort.
JBU won the rebounding battle, 41-37, and also shot 47 percent on the night (31-of-66). The hosts shot 14-of-35 from behind the arc (14-of-35) but finished with a 41.2 percent shooting clip (28-of-68) in the loss.
The victory marks John Browns first win on a Thursday in five weeks, which also came against SCU in a 70-69 win at Bill George Arena back on Jan. 22.
