SUU basketball: Thunderbirds rally to reach OT, but fall apart

ROCHESTER, Mich. — Reggie Hamilton and Travis Bader combined for 59 points as Oakland, Mich., defeated Southern Utah 76-68 in overtime Wednesday night.

The duo took 35 of the Golden Grizzlies' 48 shots and combined to go 17 for 18 at the free-throw line to lead Oakland (15-13, 9-7 Summit) to its third straight win.

Hamilton made just 7 of 21 shots but was 13 for 13 at the line to finish with 30 points; Bader was 10 of 14 from the floor and 4 of 5 from the charity stripe for 29 points. The rest of the team combined to shoot 4 for 13 from the floor and 9 for 16 from the free-throw line for 17 points.

Damon Heuir led Southern Utah (13-14, 8-9) with 18 points, including three free throws with 3 seconds left in regulation to send the game into overtime. He also had six assists.

The Thunderbirds scored just three points in overtime, making 1 of 8 shots and committing two turnovers.

The Thunderbirds trailed by nine at halftime and for much of the second half, but rallied in the final seven minutes of regulation to send the game into overtime after Heuir hit a 3-pointer to tie it at 62 with 50 seconds to play. He then hit three free throws with 3.9 seconds on the clock to send it into overtime. He also had a 3-point attempt with 19 seconds on the clock go in and out of the basket, with Oakland getting the rebound.

"We battled back, we did a great job getting back into the game, (Coach Roger Reid) did a great job getting the guys back into it," SUU assistant coach Ron Carling said after the game. "We didn't execute in overtime, a couple of times, and that last shot of Damon's with about 20 seconds to go in regulation was just off. It was on line, but it just didn't go for us. If that one shot goes down it's our game.