ST. CHARLES, Mo. - Ni'Sean Rigmaiden scored 32 points and Terrance Smith added 21 as the Lincoln men's basketball team defeated Lindenwood, 96-87, in triple overtime on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 12).

Jonell Burton had a double-double for Lincoln, as he scored 17 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, and Smith came close to doubling up as well, tallying nine boards and a pair of assists. Rigmaiden contributed two assists and two steals as well as five rebounds.

Lincoln (11-3, 4-1 MIAA) led by 11 at halftime and was up by seven with two minutes left in regulation, but Lindenwood (9-8, 2-3 MIAA) converted an old-fashioned three-point play to begin a furious comeback. The Lions hit a pair of layups down the stretch to knot the score at 68, and a Blue Tiger three-point try missed the mark to send the game into OT.

Lindenwood kept its momentum going in the first extra period, extending its run to 13 unanswered points by scoring the first six of overtime. Rigmaiden made a layup and Jonell Burton hit a three to close the gap down to one before a jumper by the Lions put Lindenwood ahead, 76-73. Rigmaiden made a trey with 27 seconds remaining, and Lincoln got a big stop as time expired to force another five minutes of play.

The teams traded baskets for much of the second overtime session, with a L'Kielynn Taylor free throw tying the game up at 81 with 1:39 on the clock. John Burton hit a corner three with about a minute to play to give Lincoln a three-point advantage, but the Lions had a response on the opposite end of the court. Another Blue Tiger trey for the win was no good, and the game went into a third extra period. Taylor, meanwhile, finished with 13 rebounds, two points and a team-high four steals.

The last five minutes of the game belonged to the Blue Tigers, with Rigmaiden scoring six of Lincoln's first eight points to take a 92-85 advantage over the Lions. Rigmaiden would go on to score Lincoln's final four points as well, as he was perfect from the line down the stretch. Lincoln held Lindenwood to just one field goal in the final overtime period and limited the Lions to just four good three-pointers in 21 attempts (.190).

Lincoln shot .486 overall, .407 from three-point land and .773 at the line to secure its seventh-straight victory, marking the first time the Blue Tigers have put together that kind of winning streak since early in the 1992-93 season. Lincoln also finished with a 52-37 advantage in rebounding and tallied eight steals with a pair of blocks.

Grant Olsson finished with 12 points and six boards while Amariontez Ivory added nine points and a team-high three assists. DJ Ward also represented Lincoln on the court in the victory.

The Blue Tigers will be back on the road on Wednesday (Jan. 16) to play Central Missouri in Warrensburg, Mo. in a 7:30 p.m. CST contest.