SYLVANIA, Ohio – Lourdes men's basketball (14-3) (8-3 in WHAC) outlasted Northwestern Ohio (UNOH) (7-10) (5-6 in WHAC) 111-107 on Wednesday evening in double overtime, increasing their home record to an undefeated 9-0.

The win helps the Gray Wolves stay within striking distance of the WHAC regular season title. Lourdes is just two games back from first place No. 13 Indiana Tech and one game back from second place Madonna in the WHAC standings.

The Lourdes men's and women's basketball programs now have a combined 18-0 home record at the Ebeid Rec Center on the year.

1^st Half
The Gray Wolves' offense started off absolutely on fire, going on a massive 24 to 6 run through the first eight minutes of the game. Freshman guard Karter Koester continued his recent sharpshooting streak from behind the arc by making his first three triples of the game and hitting four total threes during the run.

Then the game flipped upside down with UNOH going an a 19-0 run of their own over the next six minutes, taking the lead at 25 to 24. Lourdes' freshman center Charlie Wood hit a throwdown dunk to end the run and regain the lead, of which the Gray Wolves would hold on to and extend to seven at the half.

2^nd Half
The pace of play in the second half was much different than the first due to fouls being called a lot more heavily. Only seven combined fouls were drawn in the first half compared to 34 over the next half and two subsequent overtimes. Consequently, Derek Fairley and Charlie Wood picked up their third and fourth fouls in the second half and had to sit the bench more.

After not playing a single minute in the first half, Gray Wolves' freshman guard/forward Jayden Jones filled in for the foul troubled starters and stepped up big in the second half. Jones had seven points and four rebounds in 15 minutes in the second half and helped keep the Racers offense at bay.

Senior guard/forward Stephen Coleman Jr. also stepped up offensively, hitting a few mid-range post jump shots and blocking multiple Racers' shots that led to fast break layups for the Gray Wolves. Coleman Jr. ended the game with a career-high four blocks.

The last five minutes of the second half were a back and forth contest where it felt like nobody could miss. Back in the game, Fairley hit a three to tie it at 70 with three minutes left. Moments later, Koester hit his sixth triple of the night to knot the score at 73.

Lourdes was down 77 to 79 with 20 seconds left in regulation before Fairley attempted a mid-range jump shot. The shot was missed wide left off the glass but Lourdes' freshman guard J'Siah Jefferson got the offensive rebound and scored on the clutch putback layup to tie the game at 79 with six seconds left to play.

UNOH's Alex Benson then drove down the lane and crossed halfcourt steamrolling into Derek Fairley with one second left on the clock. As the ref's whistle blew, the Ebeid Rec Center was silent for a second waiting to see if the foul was on Fairley. The call was a charge on Alex Benson and the end of regulation ended tied at 79.

OT 1
The first overtime was dominated by Derek Fairley's incredibly free throw shooting. Fairley knocked down six out of seven free throws, including two out of three on an attempted three pointer that he was fouled on. After hitting those two free throws, the score was knotted up at 89 with a minute remaining in the first overtime.

The Racers' 6-foot-7 guard Antonio King drove down the lane and got fouled hard by Karter Koester. After King knocked down both free throws and put the Racers up by two, Coach DuPree called a timeout to draw up a play to try and tie or win the game.

With 10 seconds left out of the timeout, Derek Fairley missed a long jump shot but it was once again offensively rebounded by the Gray Wolves. This time, Stephen Coleman Jr got the rebound but missed the putback, getting fouled and sent to the line for a chance to tie the game with a pair of free throws.

A 61.1% free throw shooter heading into the game, Coleman Jr. had the entire arena anxiously awaiting the game's fate. A calm veteran presence all season for Lourdes, Coleman Jr. made both free throws to tie the game at 92 and send it to double overtime.

OT 2
Like everything else in the game, the second overtime started off with unique drama. UNOH guard/forward Caleb Chapman made a layup but then proceeded to say or do something that warranted a technical foul. Fairley shot the technical free throw for Lourdes and Coleman Jr. made a layup and an and-one free throw on the subsequent possession to give Lourdes a two-point lead.  

UNOH regained the lead at 102-100 with two minutes remaining before Jayden Jones hit a clutch three-pointer as the shot clock expired to give Lourdes the lead back. The Gray Wolves extended their lead to three with a layup by Stephen Coleman Jr. that was created by three Lourdes offensive rebounds on the possession.

Leading 107 to 105 with 10 seconds left in regulation and three out of five Gray Wolves starters fouled out of the game, Derek Fairley iced the game with four clutch free throws in a row. Two missed three pointers by UNOH's Antonio King and Alex Benson ended the the thrilling game with Lourdes prevailing 111 to 107.

Stats
Derek Fairley led the game with a career-high 37 points in 50 minutes played. Despite picking up his fourth foul in the second half, he didn't have a single foul in both overtimes. Stephen Coleman Jr. ended up with 20 points and seven rebounds. Karter Koester scored 18 points, all of which were via the three-point ball. Jayden Jones scored 13 points on seven rebounds off the bench.

Coach DuPree's Postgame Comments
"That's a way to fight for 40-plus minutes and that's what we had to do against a talented and athletic team like that," Coach DuPree said. "When things got tough, I thought we got tougher. We got the most stops at the end and that's what helped get us over the hump. We put a lot of emphasis on free throws in practice in the last couple of weeks because we know how important they are. Today, free throws helped us win the basketball game. Steve Coleman knocked down those two huge free throws to send it to the next overtime. Derek going 13 for 15 at the free throw line, all that stuff matters, especially in a game with a tournament feel like this one tonight."

Next Game
Lourdes will take on Cornerstone on the road on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 3pm. Then, they will face Madonna on Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 7:30 pm at home to try to improve to 10-0 on the season in the Ebeid Rec Center. The game against Madonna will be huge for Lourdes in order to improve in the top three of the WHAC standings.