PITTSBURG, Kan. - Sai Witt forced overtime with a tip-in basket, but the Lincoln men's basketball team fell to Pittsburg State, 85-77, on Saturday (Feb. 6).

It was a back-and-forth game all afternoon, with 11 lead changes and nine ties. Lincoln (8-7, 8-7 MIAA) held a 10-point lead with 6:51 remaining in regulation, while Pittsburg State (10-7, 10-7 MIAA) held an eight-point advantage late in the overtime session. The Blue Tigers shot the ball well overall, connecting on a .508 rate from the field, but made just two of their 13 tries from three-point range.

A buzzer-beating three ended up giving Pittsburg State a 35-32 lead at halftime, and PSU enjoyed a seven-point advantage after five minutes of the second half. Chuck Wilson sparked a Lincoln comeback with a layup, and back-to-back baskets by Cameron Potts brought LU to within 47-46 of the Gorillas. Another bucket by Potts followed by consecutive layups from Quinton Drayton later led to a 52-49 Blue Tiger lead with 10 minutes to play.

The Lincoln lead would hold for much of the remainder of regulation, with a 9-0 run giving the Blue Tigers a 61-51 advantage with 6:51 left on the clock. The Gorillas responded in a big way, however, using a 12-0 run to go ahead, 69-65, with less than a minute remaining. Yaniel Vidal made a pair of free throws, then later secured the rebound off a PSU miss. Drayton fed the ball to Witt for his tip-in, and the game went into overtime with a 69-69 deadlock.

The Blue Tigers struck first in the extra period, with Drayton scoring off an assist by Derrick Woods, but PSU answered with a trey. Woods made two shots at the line to swing the lead back to Lincoln, but a layup sprung the Gorillas onto a 7-0 run. LU would later cut its deficit to 81-77 on a free throw from Potts, but Pittsburg State made four-straight baskets at the free throw line to seal the win.

Potts posted a double-double, leading Lincoln with 27 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Drayton supplied 20 points and two boards, and Witt scored 10 to go with seven rebounds, two steals and a block. Woods finished with nine points and two boards, and Wilson added seven points, six rebounds and an assist. Vidal and Jordan Notch closed the scoring with two points each, and Vidal also had two rebounds, a pair of steals and two assists.

Lincoln will next travel to Topeka, Kan. on Tuesday (Feb. 9) to play Washburn in a 6:00 p.m. CST contest.