FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.- The Caldwell University men's basketball team closed out regulation with a 14-4 run but came up short 105-102 in triple overtime to Nova Southeastern University to wrap up their trip to the Sunshine State.
The Cougars fall to 1-6, while the Sharks improve to 5-0.
Caldwell was on the winning side the last time they went three overtimes. Caldwell defeated Chestnut Hill College 88-84 on January 3, 2015. The Cougars topped 100 points for the first time since their 101-68 win over The Lincoln University last November.
Nova Southeastern jumped out to a 17-8 lead at the 12:11 mark of the opening half. Caldwell rallied back with a 15-4 run to take a two-point lead. Senior
Derek Dorn (New Rochelle, N.Y.), sophomore
Zay Jennings (Allentown, Pa.) and sophomore
AJ Kittles (Glassboro, N.J.) each nailed triples to bring the Cougars back. Dorn's lay-up at the 8:53 mark gave Caldwell a 23-21 lead.
The Sharks answered as they closed the half with a strong run. They led by as much as 10 points late in the half as Caldwell trailed 41-32 at halftime.
Nova Southeastern pushed ahead by 12 points early in the second half but the Cougars rallied back. Jennings connected on three trifectas over a three-minute stretch near the midway point to close the gap to 56-54.
The Sharks extended the lead back to double digits but Caldwell roared back down the stretch of regulation. The Cougars closed out the second half with a 14-4 to tie the game and force overtime.
Dorn dropped in four points down over the final four minutes of regulation, while sophomore
Vaughn Covington (Sicklerville, N.J.) drained a triple and added three free throws. Sophomore
Eric Johnson-Alford (Clifton, N.J.) connected on a pair of free throws in the final seconds to tie the score at 71 and force overtime.
In the first overtime, the Sharks scored the first six points to take the early lead. Caldwell rallied back as sophomore
Ruud Lutterman (Gorinchem, Netherlands) drained a pair at the line to tie the score at 79 with 1:35 on the clock. The teams traded points over the final 90 seconds with Johnson-Alford scoring in the paint with five seconds left to tie the score at 83.
Dorn scored all of Caldwell's points in the second overtime paced by a pair of three-pointers. He added a lay-up with just over a minute to play. Dorn's free throw with 32 seconds left evened the score at 92 to force a third overtime.
The teams traded leads in the third overtime with Lutterman's dunk giving Caldwell a 99-98 lead with 2:10 left in the period. The Sharks tied the score with a free throw and added a bucket at the 1:20 mark to go ahead 101-99. Nova Southeastern drained four at the line over the final 38 seconds despite a Jennings triple to hold off the Cougars.
Dorn led the way with 28 points, four rebounds, five assists and four steals. Jennings drained a career-best seven triples as he finished with 23 points and two assists.
Covington posted his first career double-double with 10 points and a career-best 12 assists. Johnson-Alford posted 10 points, while Lutterman chipped in eight points and six boards. Freshman
Manley Dorme (Nanuet, N.Y.) grabbed seven rebounds in the game.
The Cougars return to the Northeast as they open up conference play with their home opener this weekend. Caldwell hosts Felician University on Saturday, December 2 in their Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference opener and first regular season home game at 3 pm at the Newman Center.
