Tigers win OT thriller, advance to MSC title game

Georgetown and Cumberlands put on a classic in Sunday's final MSC Quarterfinal game. In a game that saw 13 ties, 11 lead changes and neither team lead by more than 7, Georgetown got a stunning performance from Kyran Jones and clutch buckets from Tommy Thomas to advance to Monday's Mid-South Conference Championship with an 84-81 overtime win over Cumberlands.

Cumberlands got off to a hot start by hitting its first 2 threes, which would serve as a theme through the night for the Patriots. Georgetown turned its focus inside, where Kyran Jones got started on his best performance of the season. A jumper and free throw capped a 6-0 Georgetown run to tie the game at 6 just over 4 minutes in. The Patriots' Jonathan Brown immediately followed with his 2nd three to put Cumberlands ahead. Tommy Thomas answered with a jumper and Georgetown trailed, 9-8 with 15:30 to go in the half.

Jones gave the Tigers their first lead at 12-11 with free throws at the 12:51 mark. An Isaiah Mason jumper followed to give GC a 14-11 lead, which would tie for the Tigers' biggest lead throughout the entire 45 minutes. Gavin Stevens connected from deep with 8:03 to go to put the Tigers back up, 21-19, but Cumberlands kept firing and hitting from the perimeter. A three from Anthony Johnson put UC back up by 1. Jonathan Brown hit another 3 with 4:27 to go, capping a 13-4 Patriots run and giving UC its largest lead at 32-25. Georgetown fought back with baskets from Kyran Jones and Tae Dozier, along with 7-8 foul shooting to close the half and give the Tigers a 38-36 lead at the break. Georgetown's foul shooting helped offset Cumberlands shooting 7-14 from 3-point range in the half.

The 2nd half became nothing short of a heavyweight title fight with both sides throwing punches and counters. Cumberlands hit a jumper to start the 2nd half. Jabrion Spikes countered. A Cumberlands tip in was followed by a Kyran Jones lay-in on the ensuing possession. Spikes scored once more with 15:52 left to give GC a 45-42 edge. The Tigers then went the next 3:05 without a made shot, but the defense held strong and the streak was snapped on a Tommy Thomas dunk that put GC ahead, 48-47. Cumberlands answered with a 9-2 spurt to go up by 6 midway through the half. Free throws and a jumper from Spikes brought the Tigers within 1 at 56-55 with 8:48 left. Cumberlands answered with a 3-point play from Anthony Johnson.

The Patriots lead would get back to 7 at 68-61 with just over 5:30 to go in regulation. Georgetown chipped away at the foul line, got a tip-in from Tae Dozier, a 3 from Cam Brooks-Harris and jumpers from Kyran Jones to get back within 1 at 72-71 with 2 minutes left. Cumberlands had 2 shots on its next possession but came up empty. Georgetown failed to score its next trip down but got another stop at the rim. Isaiah Mason was fouled with 25 seconds left and made 1 of 2 at the line to tie the game at 72. Cumberlands had 1 final shot to win it but a shot inside was no good. Georgetown cleared the glass and sent the game to overtime.

After a Tiger turnover to start OT, the teams traded baskets as they seemingly did all night long. Kyran Jones tipped in a missed shot with 3:21 to go to put GC ahead, 76-75, but Cumberlands answered just 16 seconds later to retake the lead. Tommy Thomas followed with a missed shot and turnover, leading to a Cumberlands basket. Thomas atoned for the error with his only 3-pointer of the game and the affair was deadlocked at 79 with 2:15 to go. The Patriots hit 1-2 free throws the next time down to reassume the lead. With 1:04 left, Thomas found a driving lane and a lay-up to put Georgetown back up, 81-80, and force Cumberlands into a timeout with 52 seconds to play. The Tigers got the stop they needed on the ensuing possession, forcing Cumberlands to foul with 22 seconds left. The door stayed open though as Kyran Jones missed 2 free throws and Cumberlands called another timeout with 17 seconds left, trying to setup the winner. The Patriots got a look inside but it was no good. Tommy Thomas grabbed the board and fired the pass ahead to Jabrion Spikes for a lay-in with 5 seconds left and an 83-80 lead. With that lead, so little time left and knowing Cumberlands made 11 3s on the night, GC Head Coach Chris Briggs elected to foul the Patriots and put them on the line. DJ Jones made his 1st free throw with 2 seconds left. He missed the 2nd intentionally, but Cam Brooks-Harris grabbed the last of his 10 rebounds and was fouled with a second to go. Brooks-Harris made the first and missed the second, but Cumberlands could not get a final heave off and the Tigers survived.

Kyran Jones finished the night with his best performance of the season: 29 points, 10 rebounds. Not surprisingly, he was named player of the game. Tommy Thomas scored 7 of his 12 points in the overtime. Jabrion Spikes and Tae Dozier also scored 12. Dozier had 9 rebounds.

The Tigers made up for a tough night shooting beyond the arc (3-16) by having a +11 scoring edge at the foul line and outrebounding the Patriots, 56-40. The rebounding margin led the Tigers to a 44-30 edge in points in the paint.

Georgetown will now go for another Mid-South Conference Championship on Monday night against the top-seed Freed-Hardeman. It is a rematch of last year's title game that Freed-Hardeman won after rallying from a 20-point deficit. Georgetown's ideas for revenge begin with the scheduled tip time of 8:30PM ET in Bowling Green.