CLEVELAND, Miss. – The Delta State University men's basketball team played host to in-region opponent LeMoyne-Owen on Monday night at Walter Sillers Coliseum. A matchup that was intense from start to finish saw DSU fall, 87-85, in double overtime to the Magicians.
 
The Magicians came off the bench with a quick 10-0 run in the opening three minutes of the contest as Delta State struggled taking care of the ball.
 
A fiercely defensive LeMoyne-Owen team contained the Statesmen inside, but perimeter play was key as Jack Madgen drained two buckets from behind the arc to put DSU within five, 13-8, with 14:23 to go in the first half.
 
The Green-and-White capitalized on Magician turnovers, reeling off a 15-2 run to fight back to a one-point deficit, 25-24.
 
DSU finally caught up to LeMoyne-Owen at the 2:31 mark. With LaQuavius Cotton at the free throw line, the Cleveland native evened the score at 31-31.
 
Down by as many as 13 points, the Statesmen closed out the half with the score level, 35-35.
 
The two squads traded baskets throughout a second half that featured two lead changes and eight ties to continue the pressure-packed contest.
 
Neither team went up by more than six points in the half. The Statesmen gained some life late in the game when Devin Schmidt knocked down a three and Alister Chisholm added a layup on back-to-back possessions at the 6:28 mark to reach within one, 60-59.
 
Down by three with less than six minutes on the clock, Chisholm connected with Madgen behind the arc who drained a three, tying the game for the ninth time in the game, 62-62.
 
Schmidt used a layup with 47 seconds on the clock to give DSU its second lead of the half. A basket by LeMoyne-Owen's Timothy Ware tied the game again at 70-70 to force extra time.
 
Delta State found the necessary momentum at the right time. The Statesmen opened the scoring in overtime courtesy of layups from Schmidt and PJ Davis and a three from Zelvin Smith Jr to earn their largest advantage of the night, 78-73, with 1:50 on the clock.
 
LeMoyne-Owen's Daeq Mitchell-Fields used a three to tie the game once again with 26 seconds on the clock. A jumper from Madgen did not fall with seconds ticking off, leaving the score tied and forcing a second overtime.
 
Schmidt used the hot hand and connected from downtown on consecutive possessions to go up by four with less than three minutes remaining in the second overtime. The Magicians slowly chipped away to tie the game and used a Jerry Hampton jumper to take the 87-85 lead and ultimately the win.
 
The Statesmen finished the night shooting 43.8 percent from the field on 32-of-73, 41.7 percent from behind the arc on 10-of-24, and 61.1 percent from the charity stripe on 11-of-18. Schmidt led all scorers with a season-high 30 points. Madgen followed with his second straight 21-point performance, while Smith and Chisholm added double figures. Smith finished the night with a double-double, 12 points and 12 boards.
 
DSU is back in action in Monticello, Ark., on Saturday, No. 29. The Statesmen take on the University of Arkansas Monticello at 4:00 p.m.