FROSTBURG, MD – The York College men's basketball team was nearly perfect in overtime as the Spartans outlasted the Frostburg State Bobcats 101-90 in overtime in a Capital Athletic Conference contest on Thursday night in Frostburg, Md. The Spartans improve to 13-6 overall and 7-3 in the CAC while the Bobcats fall to 7-12 overall and 2-8 in the league.
Senior Kevin Whaley and junior Paul Kouvaris led four Spartans in double figures with 24 points each while Maurice Williams tallied a game-high 30 points to lead FSU.
The opening 20 minutes of play went back-and-forth for a majority of the stanza. The half featured nine lead changes and seven ties in the opening 14 minutes of the game. The Bobcats seized the lead on a Brian Anderson lay up with 5:53 left in the half. That would start Frostburg on a 17-10 run to close out the half as the Bobcats took a 44-38 lead to the break.
Frostburg held onto the lead until Todd Maciejewski tied the game on a lay up with 13:36 left in regulation. That game would be tied two more times until York went on a 15-5 spurt as the Spartans took a 70-60 lead with 6:30 remaining. The Bobcats scored ten of the next 12 points as the Spartan lead was trimmed to just two in less than three minutes of play. York scored five straight points to push the lead back to seven but the Bobcats scored nine of the final 11 points of the game to force the extra session. Mhabhushah Koffa hit a pair of free throws to tie the game with 26 seconds left and York would not be able to win in regulation as Whaley's three could not find the mark at the horn.
Overtime began with a Williams bucket to give the Bobcats a short-lived lead. A jumper from Whaley and a lay up from Kouvaris gave the Spartans a lead but the Bobcats would tie the game for a 14th time on a pair of Anderson free throws. However, the Spartans scored the next 12 points of the game to pull out the win. The Spartans were outstanding in the extra frame, scoring 22 points on three field goals and a stellar 16-of-17 performance from the free throw line.
Whaley finished the game going 5-for-14 from the field including 2-for-8 from deep. He was outstanding at the line, converting 12-of-13 in the game. He also had five rebounds and two steals in his 41 minutes of action. Kouvaris was 9-for-12 from the floor and 6-for-12 from the free throw line. He contributed four rebounds, five assists and two steals before fouling out in overtime. Senior Dylan Hoffman notched a double-double with 10 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. The 14 rebounds are six better than his previous career high. Hoffman got all 10 of his points from the free throw line as he was 10-for-12 in the game. Hoffman also had five assists, a blocked shot and a steal for York. Junior Adam Earle came off the bench to record a career-high 10 points in just 11 minutes of action. Earle was 4-for-6 from the floor and 2-for-3 from the free throw line.
Williams powered the Bobcats as he was 10-for-16 from the floor and 10-for-11 from the free throw line en route to his 30 points. He also had six rebounds and a pair of steals in 34 minutes of play. Anderson added 27 points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals, and one blocked shot. Seventeen of Anderson's points came in the opening half when he was 8-for-9 from the floor. He finished the game shooting 11-for-18 from the floor including 2-for-6 from three. He also converted 3-of-4 from the line. Koffa contributed 15 points, 11 rebounds, and six assists for the Bobcats.
The Spartans finished the game shooting 50.9% from the floor and 18.8% (3-for-16) from three. The Green and White attempted a school-record 52 free throws, making 40, good for a 76.9% conversion rate. The Bobcats shot 42% from the floor and attempted 14 more shots than the Spartans from the floor in the game. The Bobcats went 3-for-15 from three while they went 19-for-28 (67.9%) from the free throw line.
The Bobcats held a 43-42 edge on the glass while the Spartans held a 38-28 advantage in points in the paint. Frostburg did hold a 24-12 edge in second-chance points in large part because of their 19 offensive rebounds in the game.
The Spartans now have one day to prepare for a tough contest at Hood College on Saturday at 6:00 pm. The game will be held at Fort Detrick in Frederick, MD.