SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The men's basketball team dropped a tight Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division game in overtime at Shippensburg on Saturday afternoon. 
 
The Huskies (1-23, 1-19 PSAC) battled it out with the PSAC East division leader and outscored the Raiders (17-9, 15-5 PSAC) in the second half thanks to a great shooting performance from outside the arc. 
 
The game was tied at 69-69 with under a minute left to play and both teams had a chance to take the final lead, and first it was Shippensburg who had the ball for its final possession of regulation. After missing a three pointer, the Raiders were able to grab an offensive rebound for another chance to score, but Bloomsburg's Jake Nelson (West Chester, Pa./West Chester Rustin) set a charge to force a Carlos Carter turnover and give the Huskies the ball back with under 11 seconds to play. On Bloomsburg's final possession, Louie Wild (Philadelphia, PA/Roman Catholic) drove the lane and went to attempt a go-ahead layup, but his shot was off the mark and the game was sent into overtime.
 
In overtime, Shippensburg was able to score the first four points on a pair of free throws and a layup to gain a four-point lead. Nelson then knocked down two free throws and a field goal by Matt Bengel (Erie, Pa./Mercyhurst Prep) two possessions later knotted the game up at 73-73. The two teams traded baskets, then a converted and-one opportunity by Carter put Shippensburg back up by three with 1:16 left to play. Bengel tried to tie the game back up with a three on the ensuing possession, and after an offensive rebound, Desmond Freeman (Greensboro, N.C./Southeast Guilford) tried to do the same, but both shots were off the mark and the Huskies were forced to foul. From there, the Raiders stretched their lead to 84-79 by knocking down free throws in the final minute. 
 
Nelson led the Huskies in scoring with 22 points and Wild added 21 points to go along with eight rebounds and four assists. Bengel had a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Ash Kemble (Myerstown, Pa./Fork Union Military Academy) was in double figures and had 12 points to go along with his seven rebounds. Freeman was 2-for-5 from downtown and finished with eight points. 
 
As a team, Bloomsburg was 8-for-19 (42.1%) from beyond the arc and that included a clip of 6-for-8 (75%) in the second half alone. Wild knocked down three three-pointers while Nelson and Freeman had two each. Kemble added the eighth three-pointer. 
 
For Shippensburg, Carter led the team in scoring with 22 points on a 9-for-13 shooting night from the floor. Rashon Johnson had 18 points and Ty Crespo had 13 points. Luke Nedrow was the fourth and final scorer in double figures and had 11.
 
The Raiders finished the game shooting 52.5% (31-for-59) from the floor and were 8-for-17 (47.1%) from three-point range. 
 
The game was back-and-forth throughout as the contest saw 18 different lead changes and 10 different ties. Additionally, neither team was able to hold more than a six-point lead in the first or second half. The Huskies led by as much as six points at two different times in the first half, and Shippensburg held one six-point lead in the second half. The largest lead of the game was seven points, which came at the end of overtime when Bloomsburg was forced to foul and put Shippensburg on the free throw line in an attempt to extend the game. 
 
The Huskies will close out the season with a pair of home conference games next week. Bloomsburg will play Kutztown on Wednesday before hosting West Chester on Saturday for its season finale.