WARRENSBURG, Mo. - The Lincoln men's basketball team clinched a second-straight winning season with a 70-63 overtime win at Central Missouri on Thursday night (Feb. 16).

Anthony Virdure scored 20 points, though none were bigger than a pair of free throws with less than three seconds left in regulation to tie the game. Virdure, who went 10-for-10 at the charity stripe, also tallied a team-high five steals, dished a pair of assists and grabbed three rebounds.

Jaylon Smith came one rebound shy of a double-double, as he led LU with 27 points and nine rebounds. Smith additionally dished a team-high three assists, blocked a shot and recorded a pair of steals. Maurice Mason also finished in double figures, as he recorded 10 points, four boards and an assist.

With just over three minutes remaining, Central Missouri (17-7, 11-5 MIAA) hit a layup to take a 51-41 lead over Lincoln (15-11, 8-9 MIAA). O'Shai Clark answered with a layup of his own, but UCM made a free throw to make it a nine-point game. Clark ended his night with four points, seven rebounds and an assist.

Richie Lewis scored on a fast break following a pair of free throws by Virdure, and Mason later hit a trey to pull the Blue Tigers within four. Following another steal, Smith converted an old-fashioned three-point play to make it a 54-53 ballgame with 56 seconds to play. Lewis scored three points on the evening, dished two assists, grabbed a pair of rebounds, blocked a shot and registered a steal.

Central Missouri sank a pair of free throws to re-take a three-point lead, but Virdure pulled LU back within one on a layup with 19 ticks left on the clock. The Blue Tigers sent the Mules to the line, and UCM went 1-for-2, setting Virdure up for his game-tying free throws.

Lincoln struck first in overtime, as Mason drained a three off an assist from Lewis. UCM cut the LU lead down to one with a pair of free throws, but Virdure hit two shots of his own from the line, and Smith made a layup off a steal by Tacourrus Mattox to push LU's lead up to five. Mattox scored four points and grabbed seven rebounds on the evening to go with three steals and a block.

The teams traded buckets, and Mason made a shot from the charity stripe to put Lincoln up by six. Another free throw, this one by Lewis, made it a seven-point affair. UCM hit a layup with 24 seconds, but Smith put the game away with two more free throws to seal the Blue Tigers' seven-point victory.

The win was Lincoln's 15th of the season, matching the Blue Tigers' regular season win total from a year ago. The victory was also the first for LU against Central Missouri since Nov. 23, 2001, when the Blue Tigers beat the Mules, 78-72, in St. Joseph, Mo. Central Missouri had won 18-straight in the series before Lincoln's overtime win on Thursday night.

Kevin Bolen rounded out Lincoln's scoring with two points and a rebound. Chase Morfeld also had a rebound in the win.

Lincoln will now have a week off before its next contest, a 7:30 p.m. CST game in St. Joseph against Missouri Western on Thursday (Feb. 23).