SOUTH BEND, Ind. --- The University of St. Francis men's basketball team and overtimes just can't seem to get along in 2023 as the Fighting Saints dropped their third extra-session contest of the season on Saturday, falling to defending Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament champion Indiana University South Bend 82-76 in double overtime on the road.

Four of USF's seven contests have now been decided by single digits with the Saints (2-5, 1-3 CCAC) having dropped each of the four affairs, including all three games that have been extended by overtime.

St. Francis thought it was going to hand Indiana South Bend its first league loss of the season only to have the Titans (8-3, 4-0) rally to force the first overtime with a late three-pointer and then shut the Saints out in the second overtime to win.

In a contest that featured 14 ties and seven lead changes, neither team led by more than single digits.  The hosts held the advantage for much of the first half, including 38-31 with 1:41 remaining.  A pair of three-pointers from EJ Charles and Dakoda Joachim along with a layup by Rahmel Davis eventually pulled the Saints to within 40-39 at the break.

Te Jones' jumper to start the second half gave USF its first lead since the 5:08 mark of the first half and the Saints held the advantage for all but 1:44 of the final half.  Another Jones jumper with 5:33 remaining provided St. Francis with its biggest lead of the afternoon at 64-55. 

Indiana South Bend would rally with 13 of the final 17 points of the half with Jylen Petty's trey with 48 seconds to play forcing the tenth tie of the game.  The Saints would have two chances to win the contest in regulation, but missed on a rushed three-point attempt with the shot clock expiring with 23 seconds left and a jumper from the right baseline following a steal at the end of regulation.

In the first overtime, St. Francis matched every two points Indiana South Bend would score.  The Saints looked to take their only lead of overtime on a Nadav Gerner controversial jumper with 57 seconds left.  The shot was ruled to have come after the shot clock expired, however, and both teams exchanged a pair of points over the next 26 seconds. 

Indiana South Bend did have the final chance at ending the contest in the first overtime, but missed on a layup with eight seconds left and the Saints could not get a shot off before time expired.

A three-pointer and three free throws by the Titans in the second overtime accounted for all of the scoring as USF went 0-for-8 from the field over the final five minutes.

Jones tied his season high for the Saints with 19 points, including six of USF's eight points in the first overtime.  Davis also hit for a season-high 17 points off the bench, while Ben Faatz provided 13 points and seven rebounds. 

Charles just missed a double-double with 11 points and nine boards.  Joachim supplied six points and seven boards.

IUSB's Quentez Columbus led all scorers with 22 points.  Petty authored a double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds) for the Titans, as well.          

The Saints outscored IUSB 66-63 from the field, but went just 10-for-19 at the foul line for a season-low .526 reading.  Indiana South Bend was 19-for-26 at the charity stripe.
The Titans also out-boarded USF, 48-35.

Notes: Faatz, like Jones, tied his season high in scoring with his 13 markers.  He has now scored in double figures in three straight games … Charles' nine rebounds were also his top mark this winter … The Saints' next two games are both exhibitions, a Dec. 14 date at Lewis University and a Dec. 19 matchup with University of Southern Indiana.

Links to live coverage can be found at gofightingsaints.com/coverage. You can also keep up with everything happening around USF Athletics on Twitter @USFSaints.