KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - The Lincoln men's basketball team rallied from a 14-point second half deficit to force overtime, but Truman State escaped with a 79-75 win over the Blue Tigers on Monday (Jan. 20).

Mike West had 23 points to lead the Blue Tigers and also grabbed four rebounds, dished two assists and recorded a steal. Franck Yetna blocked four shots and registered four steals to go with 20 points and six rebounds. Malcolm Davis, meanwhile, finished with a team-high 10 rebounds and tallied five points.

Truman State (10-7, 4-5 GLVC) took a 59-45 lead on a jumper with 10 minutes left in regulation, but Matthieu Biembongo started the comeback for LU by making a pair of free throws. Yetna stole the ball on the ensuing possession and dunked it, then West hit back-to-back three-pointers to pull Lincoln (12-5, 4-5 GLVC) within two. After Tyson Robinson claimed a defensive rebound, West hit a jumper to tie the game at 59 with six minutes remaining.

With the Blue Tigers facing a two-point deficit with 1:51 to play, West sank another three to put LU ahead, 64-63. Truman State answered with a layup, but a free throw by Max Ekono knotted the score back up at 65. The Bulldogs briefly broke the tie by making a pair of free throws, but West made a layup to tie the game once again at 67. Ekono stole the ball to give Lincoln a chance to win in regulation, but a three-point attempt missed the mark.

The Bulldogs scored first in the extra period and maintained a lead until Ekono stole the ball and made a layup to tie the game at 73 with 1:53 remaining. Truman State regained the advantage with a pair of successful free throws, part of a 23-for-27 night at the line by the Bulldogs. One more shot at the charity stripe put TSU ahead by three, but Robinson cut the lead down to 76-75 with two free throws of his own. LU also had a strong day at the stripe, making 16 of its 19 free throw attempts.

Forced to foul with 12 ticks left on the clock, Lincoln sent Truman State to the line, but the Bulldogs missed the first shot before making the second, putting the score at 77-75 and giving the ball back to the Blue Tigers. LU unfortunately turned the ball over, however, and the Bulldogs made two more shots at the line to seal the win. For the game, Lincoln shot .379 over and .360 from long range. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, shot .383 from the field and .323 from three-point distance.

Ekono ended the evening with seven points, six boards, two takeaways and a team-high three assists. Tyler Chapman added 12 points, a pair of assists, two steals and a rebound. Robinson had five points and three boards while Biembongo closed the scoring with three points, eight rebounds and a block.

Lincoln will travel to Lebanon, Ill. to play McKendree on Thursday (Jan. 23) at 7:30 p.m. CST.