Obame Obame, Burns Lead UMES To OT Win Over Howard
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Tim Burns scored six of his 15 points in overtime and Lyvann Obame Obame added four of his 13 in the extra period to help Maryland Eastern Shore edge Howard, 68-66 in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference men's game at Burr Gymnasium.
The Bison (7-23 overall, 6-9 in the MEAC) drew first blood in overtime when Paul Kirkpatrick converted one of two free throws for a 59-58 lead. Obame Obame then scored on a layup to give the Hawks a 60-59 advantage. Burns scored on layup following a Bison miss to up the margin to 62-59.
Calvin Thompson, who scored seven of Howard's eight points in the OT period, singlehandedly kept his team in a position to win but the combination of Obame Obame and Burns proved to be too much as the Bison dropped their fourth straight.
In the Howard loss to Bethune-Cookman on Monday, free throws proved to be the Achilles heel as the team missed 16 of 27. They shot a bit better (59 percent) in this game but the misses proved costly.
"We worked on them like crazy," said Howard Coach Gil Jackson. "We will keep working on them. Free throws are very important in college basketball."
Six seniors were honored in the pre-game ceremonies and it appeared to serve as a motivator. Kirkpatrick, a 6-9 senior center, had his best game of the season with 12 points.
"Paul helped us get some separation," said Coach Jackson. "CJ (Prince) stepped up his game and Kandi (Mukole) stepped up and drew two charges. I thought overall, the kids defended like crazy and we had a chance to win."
Kevin White tallied 14 of his team-high 16 points in the second half to go along with 6 assists. Sean Berry added nine for the Hawks (10-19 overall, 8-7 in the MEAC) off the bench.
The Bison were led by Thompson's game-high 17, all coming in the second half and overtime. Dadrian Collins had 13 off the bench and Mike Phillips tallied 8 off the bench.
NEXT UP: The Hawks take on Delaware State on the road on Thursday at 7:30 pm while the Bison will try to snap their current skid in an 8pm match against the Pirates of Hampton University in Hampton, VA.
