LYNCHBURG, Va. — Averett University men's basketball held off Randolph College 83-80 in overtime Friday to secure the Cougars' first Old Dominion Athletic Conference victory of the season.

Averett (3-11, 1-5 ODAC) had its 18-point second half lead erased down the stretch in regulation as Randolph (7-7, 1-4 ODAC) forced overtime with a pair of free throws in the waning seconds to tie the game, 72-72.

The Cougars scored the first four points of overtime and led until a Randolph 3-pointer tied the game, 78-78, with 1:10 to play. Freshman Jamison Graves put Averett back in front with a pair of free throws, but the WildCats also nailed two free throws at the other end to knot the score. Graves hit two more free throws with 21 seconds left. After a missed Randolph 3-pointer, Graves got the rebound and was fouled, where he hit one of two free throws in the final seconds. A potential game-tying Randolph 3-pointer at the end missed, giving Averett the big conference win on the road.
 
Junior Bryce Shaw led Averett with a career-high 22 points to go with seven rebounds as three Cougars scored in double figures. Graves totaled 17 points and five rebounds with senior Jordan Lewis scoring 15 points to go with five rebounds and five assists. Freshman Terrell Fitzgerald also chipped in a career-high nine points off the bench. Senior Jason Sellars II had a team-high 11 rebounds.

Down early to begin the game, Averett made its move midway through the first half. Trailing 12-9 with 12:20 left in the first period, Averett used an 11-0 run to surge ahead 20-12 after a pair of free throws by Lewis. Another 9-0 run by the Cougars late in the half helped them take a 38-28 lead into the break.

Averett's lead grew to 18 points with 13:25 remaining. Randolph got within single digits a few minutes later as Danny Bickey hit back-to-back 3-pointers to turn a 12-point game into a six-point deficit for the WildCats. Cole Perry and Bickey hit shots to trim Averett's lead to 56-54 with under eight minutes to play. Although the Cougars temporarily weathered the storm, Randolph eventually tied the game at 60-60. Averett never trailed down the stretch and led by as many as five before the WildCats rallied to force overtime.

Bickley had a game-high 38 points to lead Randolph.

Averett improved to 5-0 all-time against Randolph.

The game was originally scheduled for Saturday but it was moved up to Friday to avoid potential winter weather in the forecast.

Averett hosts No. 25 Shenandoah University on Wednesday.


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