NEW ORLEANS – Joe McCray sank two free throws with one second left in overtime to lift the Delta State Statesmen to a 97-96 victory over the Loyola Wolfpack on Thursday.

McCray's free throws wiped out Loyola's one-point lead, which the Wolfpack had acquired with a three-pointer from Sean Bennett with 13 seconds remaining in overtime. McCray (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Nebraska) scored 18 points in the game.

The win was the first of the regular season for the No. 21-ranked Statesmen (1-1). Loyola, an NAIA school in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference, fell to 1-1.

Roderick Ollie (Indianola, Miss./UAB) scored a game-high 31 points on 11-of-16 shooting to lead the Statesmen. He was 5-of-7 from 3-point range, and grabbed a team-high six rebounds. Dino Hair scored 16 points.

The Statesmen trailed by as many as eight points during the early stages of the second half, but consecutive 3-pointers from McCray and Hair tied the score at 63 with 9:25 left in regulation. Neither team led by more than three points the rest of the half.

Delta State jumped out to a quick 87-83 lead in the overtime session thanks to buckets from McCray and Marqueys Brown (Memphis, Tenn./Crichton College). The Wolfpack used a 7-2 run between the 1:21 and 0:13 marks in overtime to pull ahead before McCray iced the game with his final two points.

The Statesmen shot 58 percent (32-of-55) from the field during the game, compared to 48 percent by the Wolfpack. Delta State shot 47 percent (8-of-17) from the 3-point circle.

Eric Spencer (Marion, Ark./Arkansas-Fort Smith) and Earnesto Green (Jackson, Miss./East Central CC) scored eight points apiece for Delta State. Brown and Jeremie Davis (Arcadia, La./New Orleans) added seven points for the Statesmen.

Delta State opens its home schedule Monday when the Statesmen host West Alabama in the second half of a women's-men's doubleheader. The Lady Statesmen and Lady Tigers tip off at 6 p.m., followed by the men's teams, who are scheduled for an 8 p.m tip.