KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Thomas Jefferson University men's basketball team (2-1) earned a hard-fought road victory on Wednesday night, defeating Kutztown (0-2), 91-88, in overtime.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Rams got out to an 8-2 lead to begin the contest. However, the Golden Bears answered with a 23-6 surge as they got into a rhythm. Kutztown was ahead 25-14 with 9:39 remaining after the run. Jefferson still trailed by nine (29-20) at the 5:29 mark but closed the first half with 12 of the last 16 points to cut the deficit to one (33-32) at halftime. Erik Timko led the stretch with six points.
 
The Rams had a slim 44-43 edge with 14:18 left in the second half. The Golden Bears then went on a 14-4 run to take a 57-48 advantage with 11:20 to go. Jefferson had the deficit down to six (70-64) with 3:35 remaining before taking over with 10 straight points for a 74-70 lead with 1:04 on the clock. Four different players scored during the run.
 
Kutztown got within one but Timko drilled a three to restore a four-point margin (77-73) with 26 seconds to play. The Golden Bears hit a jumper then the Rams turned the ball over on the inbounds play. A foul put Kutztown at the line and two free throws evened the score at 77 with 15 ticks left. Both teams turned the ball over in quick succession before the Golden Bears came up with a steal and drew a foul with 0.6 on the clock. However, Kutztown missed the front end of the one-and-one and the teams went to overtime.


Timko sank a jump shot 21 seconds into the extra session to put Jefferson ahead and the Rams would not relinquish the lead the rest of the way. Jefferson led by as much as five (86-81) with 1:04 remaining. The Golden Bears got within two (87-85) with 20 seconds to go but the Rams converted their opportunities at the foul line to put the game away.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Erik Timko: 23 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, 1 steal
Ahmed Barba-Bey: 18 points on 6-of-6 shooting (4-4 3PT), 7 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists
Antonin Kemkeng: 17 points, 13 rebounds, 1 assist
 
JEFFERSON AS A TEAM
FG: 34-of-70 (48.6%)
3PT: 11-of-27 (40.7%)
FT: 12-of-15 (80.0%)
 
NOTES
- Antonin Kemkeng recorded his first double-double of the season.
- Jefferson made a season-high 11 three-pointers.
- The Rams have won three straight games versus Kutztown.
 
UP NEXT
Jefferson takes on Winston-Salem State in the Harlem Renaissance Classic in New York City on Saturday, November 19^th at 3 p.m.