ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Siena Heights men's basketball team played toe-to-toe with Concordia (Mich.) in a heartbreaking 66-61 loss in overtime on the road Wednesday night. The Saints (1-6, 0-3 WHAC) are still pursuing their first win in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) as they suffer a second consecutive close loss in league action.
Curtis Bell III recorded a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Saints in both of those categories. Jayden Sims scored 15 points in the losing effort. Davin Walker was 5-9 from the floor for 13 points, five steals, and five rebounds in the contest. Kiewuan Graham finished with seven points, four rebounds, and three assists.
The game remained competitive throughout the 45 minutes of play, with neither team ever pulling far away from the other. The Cardinals' largest lead was five points, the gap at the end of the extra period. The Saints held a seven-point lead in the second half but couldn't pull any further away. CUAA's bench outscored Siena Heights 16-5, and the Cardinals also held a 36-26 edge in points in the paint. Siena Heights had 25 turnovers in the game and gave up 29 points off of those turnovers. The score was tied six times, and there were seven lead changes in the game.
The Saints and the Cardinals scored 23 points in the first half and 32 points in the second half as the game moved into overtime. Walker hit a jumper from distance in the open 11 seconds of the extra period to give the Saints a 58-55 lead. A layup by CUAA cut the lead to one point, and a second one gave Concordia (Mich.) a 59-58 lead with 3:32 to play. A free throw and a three pushed the advantage to 63-58 with 2:08 left to go. Sims hit a layup with 48 seconds remaining to cut the home team's lead to 63-61, but a three-pointer with 20 seconds remaining sealed the win for CUAA.
Up Next
The Saints will look to earn the first WHAC victory of the season at home this Saturday, November 20, when they host Cornerstone at 3:00 p.m.
