UNCW fails to win third consecutive game – Seahawks fall in overtime

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — John Wilkins and Alex Rubin drained key three-pointers in overtime as visiting Illinois State survived a late charge by UNCW for a 62-60 victory over the Seahawks in a wild non-conference men’s basketball game Monday night at Trask Coliseum.

The Redbirds of the Missouri Valley Conference improved to 8-3 on the season with the close triumph in only their second road game of the season. The Seahawks stand 5-5 after falling to 1-2 in overtime games this season.

The Redbirds, behind the inspired play of freshman forward Jon Ekey, weathered several runs in regulation from the Seahawks before taking control in the two minutes of sudden death. Ekey, who had scored 31 points in 10 games, finished with 22 points, and Wilkins and Jackie Carmichael chipped in 13 and 11, respectively, for ISU.

Senior point man Chad Tomko of UNCW led all scorers with 23 points and added eight rebounds, three assists and four steals. Five players had eight or more points for the Seahawks and sophomore forward Keith Rendleman pulled down 10 rebounds.

After battling to a 52-all draw after regulation, ISU’s Carmichael scored the first points in overtime with 3:06 left when Matt Wilson picked up his fifth foul. Carmichael then dropped in the second of two free throws for a slim 53-52 advantage.

With the score deadlocked at 56-all, Rubin drained a critical triple from the top of the key with 42 seconds left and Carmichael scored on a dunk 30 seconds later as ISU inched out to a 61-56 lead.

However, Milson sank a long three-pointer and after Rubin made the first of two free throws for a 62-59 lead with 6.4 seconds on the clock, Milson was fouled and made the first of two free throws. The Texas freshman then missed his second attempt intentionally, Tomko chased down the rebound and missed a desperation shot at the buzzer to end the game.

ISU held UNCW to 34.8 percent shooting to carve out a 25-19 lead at intermission. UNCW then sliced the deficit to one point on three occasions in the first eight minutes of the final period before Tomko took over in the second half. Tomko scored 15 points in the second half and overtime to carry the Seahawks.

The Seahawks finally caught up with the Redbirds with 8:40 left in regulation when Tomko drained a long three in front of the UNCW bench to give UNCW a 37-36 edge. Tomko added a twisting layup and UNCW went ahead, 39-36, to cap a 17-8 spurt.

Wilkins answered for ISU with a trifecta from the left corner to bring the game even at 39-all at 7:31 and the Redbirds continued on a 7-0 mini-run to regain control. A runner in the lane by Austin Hill pushed ISU’s lead back to 43-39 at 6:13.

Another trifecta by Wilkins helped ISU take a 48-43 advantage and the Redbirds remained in control, 52-47, when Carmichael converted both ends of a bonus situation with 1:51 on the clock. But UNCW fought back when Milson connected on a runner on the right side and Ahmad Grant’s three ball from the left corner tied the score 52-all with 37.7 seconds remaining.

ISU took advantage of an early cold spell by the Seahawks to bolt out to an 8-0 lead before Buzz Peterson’s team broke into the scoring column. Carmichael’s jumper at 15:46 gave the Redbirds a working margin until the Seahawks broke through on a layup by Tomko 17 seconds later.

The Redbirds capitalized on nine UNCW turnovers to maintain a comfortable lead throughout the first half. A triple by Ekey with 3:48 remaining gave ISU its biggest lead, 25-15.

The Seahawks wrap up a string of three games in five days on Wednesday with a 7 p.m. tip-off against Campbell at the Pope Convocation Center in Buies Creek, N.C. The Redbirds, meanwhile, are idle until Dec. 29 when ISU entertains Creighton in its conference opener at Redbird Arena.

GAME NOTES: ISU owned a 40-30 lead in rebounding…Only seven players saw action for the Seahawks…UNCW made just 9-of-17 free throws after coming into the game hitting 72.1 percent at the charity stripe…The Seahawks committed just four turnovers in the second half and overtime after committing six miscues in the first half…Matt Wilson fouled out with 3:06 left in overtime…Peterson stands 13-11 in overtime games during his 13-year career…ISU won its third straight over UNCW after losing the opening game of the series in 1994…Senior guard Ahmad Grant, a Peoria resident, scored eight points for the Seahawks…Tomko raised his career point total to 1,300 points, becoming only the seventh player in UNCW history to reach the plateau.

Article courtesy UNCW Sports Information