Shoremen Rally From 17-Point Second-Half Deficit to Force Overtime

Allentown, Pa. - - - The Washington College men's basketball team dropped an 87-74 decision in overtime against the Muhlenberg Mules, in a Centennial Conference contest on Saturday afternoon. The Shoremen fall to 3-10 (0-6) while the Mules improve to 5-7 (2-3). The Shoremen rallied from a 17-point second-half deficit to force the extra period but were unable to pull out the victory.

How It Happened
- The Shoremen jumped out to an 11-6 lead at the 14:26 mark. Sophomore forward Sam Corrao scored five points during the stretch and freshman forward Precieux Tshibangu registered a pair of buckets.
- The Mules responded with 12 straight points to take the lead for good, 18-11, with 11:25 remaining in the stanza. Freshman guard Jayson Williams-Johnson caught fire and scored eight points during the spurt, including back-to-back 3-point scores to end the run.
- Washington would trim the deficit to 23-20 after senior guard Dilyn Becker's long jumper from the left-wing with 7:03 left in the half, however, the hosts went on a 14-4 run to widen their lead to 37-24 at the 3:08 mark. Senior guard Nate Henty-Brown scored the final six points of the stretch for the Mules and Williams-Johnson added five of his 19 first-half points.
- The Shoremen finished the stanza strong as they outscored the hosts by a 7-2 count to trim the deficit to 39-31 at the break. Tshibangu and Becker contributed jumpers and senior guard Tray Wright finished the scoring with a right-wing trifecta.
- The visitors were still within eight, 41-33, after Becker's jumper at the 19:08 mark but the hosts scored six straight to extend their lead to 47-33 with 17:47 left.
- The Mules took their biggest lead of the game, 54-37, after junior forward Tommy McGuire converted a jumper in the lane at the 14:10 mark.
- The Shoremen scored six straight points to close within 54-43 at the 12:00 mark but the hosts answered with a 10-6 spurt to take a 64-49 advantage with 7:37 left.
- Washington did not go away as they began a furious rally to come all the way back. The Shoremen rattled off ten straight points to whittle the lead down to 64-59 at the 5:30 mark. Sophomore guard Jason Zielinski opened the burst with a jumper from the right-corner and then classmate Kedrick Frink produced the next eight points, including a pair of treys to highlight the stretch.
- The Shoremen closed within 66-63 after following up his own miss with 3:40 on the clock. Junior guard Matt Kempter was then fouled on a long trey attempt and converted all three attempts to make it 69-63 at the 2:40 mark.
- Becker and Wright followed with four straight free throws to bring the visitors within 69-67 with 1:32 remaining.
- Senior guard Nicholas Chudy would give the hosts a 70-67 edge with thirty seconds left after hitting 1-of-2 from the charity-stripe.
- Wright (8 points, 5 steals) splashed a clutch long-range bomb off an assist by Frink to even the contest at 70-70 with 11 ticks left.
- Chudy misfired on a pair of 3-pointers as time expired in regulation.
- After the Mules opened overtime with a pair of free throws, Corrao delivered a jump hook from the right-block twenty seconds into the extra period.
- Brown hit two free throws to put the hosts ahead for good and then Kempter drained back-to-back triples to spot his team an 80-72 advantage with 2:40 left.
- The Shoremen were unable to recover as Muhlenburg kept adding to their lead.

For the Shoremen
- Frink led for players in double-figures with 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting. He also added nine boards and three steals.
- Becker contributed 15 points and added five assists.
- Corrao finished with 12 points and Tshibangu had a career-best 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
- The Shoremen went 28-of-69 (40.6 percent) overall, hit 7-of-26 (26.9 percent) from deep, and were 11-for-16 (68.8 percent) from the line.

For the Mules
- Williams-Johnson was the difference in the game as he produced a career-high 33 points on 10-of-16 shooting, including 11-of-12 free throws. 
- McGuire added 14 points and six rebounds while Kempter had 13 points.
- Henty-Brown recorded a double-double of 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
- The hosts shot 48.1 percent overall (26-of-54), swished 8-of-27 treys (29.6 percent), and were 27-of-34 (79.4 percent) from the foul line.

Notes
- The Shoremen are now 0-3 in overtime this season.
- Frink returned to the lineup after missing three straight games and now has scored double-figures in seven contests this season.
- Wright, who also missed the last three games, came up with five steals for the second time this season (Penn State-Harrisburg).
- Becker tied his season-high with five assists.

Quote From Coach Goodman
"It is good to be almost whole from the Covid restrictions we have had to endure.  We gave ourselves a chance to win the game.  We were rusty and inconsistent throughout the game.  We are a resilient team that has not played it's best basketball."

Up Next
- Washington will travel to Dickinson on Monday at 2:00 p.m.