Men's Basketball earns OT win over Cornerstone

(Grand Rapids, MI) - The Rochester Christian men's basketball team headed to Cornerstone University for a WHAC matchup against the Golden Eagles. After the two teams put up 99 points combined in the first half, RCU responded by tying the game up with 11 seconds remaining to send the game to overtime. The overtime period was a back-and-forth battle that ultimately ended with Tymias Williams hitting a free throw jumper with eight seconds left to give RCU the lead. 

RCU improves to 17-7 overall on the season while moving to 12-6 in WHAC play. 

FIRST HALF

The Golden Eagles began the game on a 11-2 run over the first four minutes of the game. Tyler Allen and Tymias Williams brought the Warriors right back into the game with a couple of made buckets RCU took their first lead in the game following back-to-back Ashton Goul three-pointers and a Dustin Farrow layup gave them a three-point lead going into the midway point.

Darnell Turner Jr. and Tymias Williams made a couple of shots each before a Mason Parker three-pointer and Tymias Williams hit back-to-back threes, giving them a nine point lead, their largest of the game up to that point. CU ended the period on a 17-6 run, with Linden Holder and Ashton Goul hitting three's.

SECOND HALF

Cornerstone was able to jump out to a 10-point lead with a 8-3 run to start the second half. Tyler Allen responded by breaking the run with an "and-1" to jump start a 13-2 run, with Tymias Williams, scoring six of the points. From that point both teams would start to trade points as neither team had more than a four point lead over the final 10 minutes. 

Following Ashton Goul's three-pointer, the next six RCU points would come from the free throw line. Darnell Turner Jr. and Tyler Allen broke that run with buckets. Following a solid defensive possession, the Warriors took the ball down the court and Tymias Williams would hit a layup with 11 seconds remaining to tie the game up. A missed CU jumper before the buzzer would send the game to overtime. 

OVERTIME

James Fisher and Tyler Allen scored the first two buckets for RCU in the overtime period as the back and forth battle continued. After a couple of buckets by both teams, Tymias Williams made a steal at the defensive end and made a free throw line jumper with eight seconds left. 

TOP PERFORMANCES

Tymias Williams led the group of five Warriors in points with 24 points, while Ashton Goul and Tyler Allen both had 16 points off the bench. Williams led the group with five assists, while Linden Holder had four. 

Tymias Williams and James Fisher led the rebounding effort with nine and eight, respectively. Williams recorded six steals in the game which is the seventh-most in a single game for RCU. 

UP NEXT

The Warriors head now travel to Siena Heights as they head into the final two weeks of the season on Wednesday, February 11 at 8 PM.