DAHLONEGA, Ga. — The Auburn University at Montgomery Warhawks men's basketball team (1-1) defeated the Savannah State Tigers (0-1) 105-99 in overtime on Friday, rallying from a five-point deficit late in regulation before pulling away in the extra period.
The victory marked
Anthony Komara's first win as AUM's head coach.
COACH KOMARA'S COMMENTS
"I'm extremely proud of our guys for how we hung in there tonight. We battled adversity and had multiple chances to let the game slip away from us but we kept fighting which was great to see especially this early in the season. We have a quick turnaround going into tomorrow and will have to be ready for an extremely well coached North Georgia team."
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The Warhawks used an early 9-0 run to build a 16-5 lead and later stretched the margin to 27-16 behind 3-pointers from
Devon McKinnon and
Parker Robison. Savannah St. worked back into the game and took a 49-48 lead in the final minutes of the first half before the Tigers went into halftime ahead 53-50.
Second Half
AUM opened the second half with four McKinnon free throws and a Robison 3-pointer to move back in front 57-55. After Savannah St. later took a 70-67 lead, Robison scored inside and
Jackson Porch followed with a jumper to put the Warhawks ahead 71-70 with 11:11 left.
The teams traded ties at 72, 74 and 78 before
Sam Duskin and Porch connected from 3-point range, with Porch's second 3-pointer putting AUM ahead 84-82 at 7:03. Savannah St. answered with nine straight points for a 91-86 lead at 3:38, but McKinnon hit a 3-pointer, Robison tied the game with a layup at 1:41 and Robison put the Warhawks ahead 93-91 with a jumper at :47. The Tigers tied it at 93 with :20 left, and AUM's final two attempts did not fall as regulation ended tied.
Overtime
Robison found
RJ Williams for a fast-break layup that put the Warhawks ahead 95-93 at 4:03 in overtime, then added two fast-break layups of his own to give AUM a 99-94 lead at 2:17. After Savannah St. pulled within 99-97 at 1:10, Robison made two free throws, the Tigers turned it over, and Robison scored off Porch's assist at :43 to push the lead to 103-97.
Tyson Sexton answered a Savannah St. basket with the final points off another Porch assist, and Duskin grabbed the defensive rebound after the Tigers' last missed 3-pointer to close the win.
NOTABLES
- Robison scored a season-high 37 points with four 3-pointers, recorded 10 assists and set a season high with seven steals.
- McKinnon finished with a season-high 19 points, converted 7 of 9 free throws and collected two steals.
- Victor Odiari scored 14 points on six made field goals and added four rebounds, giving him at least 14 points over the first two games of the season.
- Porch scored a season-high 11 points and has made at least three 3-pointers in two consecutive games.
- Duskin collected 11 rebounds and added eight points with two assists.
- The Warhawks turned 19 Savannah St. turnovers into 30 points and finished with 23 assists and 12 3-pointers.
UP NEXT
Up next, the Warhawks stay in Dahlonega, Ga., to face North Georgia on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 3 p.m.
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