Tartans Top Washington & Jefferson in Overtime, 104-99

(WASHINGTON, Pa.) - The Carnegie Mellon University men's basketball team traveled to Washington & Jefferson College Saturday afternoon and left with a 104-99 overtime victory. The win moves the Tartans record to 4-2 overall while the Presidents are also now 4-2.

Carnegie Mellon shot 46.1% from the floor while W&J ended the contest shooting 49.4%. It marked the third game this season that the Tartans had five players score in double figures with sophomore R.J. Holmes (Buffalo Grove, Ill./Adlai Stevenson) leading the way with a game-high 32 points on 13-of-16 from the floor. The sophomore hauled down a career-high 13 rebounds to record his second career double-double.

Junior Sean Oberman (Flemington, N.J./Hunterdon Central) converted 11-of-18 from the floor for a career-high 25 points. Juniors Kevin Sax (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Thunder Ridge) and Josh Berry (Western Springs, Ill./Lyons Township) each had 14 points with sophomore Jack Stone (Newport Beach, Calif./Corona Del Mar) ending with 13. Sax tied a career-high with 10 rebounds to also pickup his second career doble-double. Berry grabbed a career-high eight rounds while he also tied a career-best with six assists as four other Tartans each dished out four assists apiece.

The Tartans trailed 45-31 with 5:37 to play in the first half before scoring seven straight points to make the score 45-38 with four minutes to play. The Tartans run expanded to 16-4 over the remaining of the half and saw their 14-point deficit cut to a two-point at 49-47 at the break.

Three minutes into the second half, Holmes put the Tartans ahead 56-55 with a made free throw. After fur more lead changes, Carnegie Mellon used a 13-2 run midway through the half to grab a 78-68 advantage. With 4:57 left in regulation, the Cardinal and Gray were ahead 87-77, but the Presidents closed regulation on a 14-4 run to send the game into overtime.

The Tartans never trailed in the extra frame, as Holmes opened with a layup. With 56 seconds showing on the clock, W&J pulled within a point at 98-97 following a layup by Isaiah Langston. On the ensuing Tartan possession down the court, Holmes connected on a long ball from the top of the arc and then Berry converted 3-of-4 from the foul line to seal the Tartans second overtime win this season.

Carnegie Mellon will return to the hardwood on Saturday, December 11 with a 2:00 p.m. tip against Denison University at Wiegand Gymnasium.