JOLIET, Ill. -- Joffrey Nunnally scored four of his team-high 16 points in the extra period, including a go-ahead jumper with 2:38 minutes remaining, to lift the University of St. Francis men's basketball team to an 83-79 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference overtime victory over Viterbo University (Wis.) on Wednesday night at the Sullivan Center.  The contest was the first official game of the 2025-26 season for the Fighting Saints, who previously competed in three exhibitions over the past three weeks to begin the year.  The loss was the fourth of the season for Viterbo (2-4, 0-1 CCAC).

St. Francis trailed by as many as six points in the first half before putting together a 7-1 run over a three-minute period capped off with a powerful dunk from Merrick Small to take its first lead of the game at 14-12 with 14:57 remaining before the intermission.  The Saints led by as many as five points in the half's remaining minutes before settling for a tied ballgame at the break when a Small layup at the buzzer set the score at 39-39.

The V-Hawks out-shot the Saints in the opening half 60.0 percent (15-of-25) with six treys to USF's 53.9 percent reading (14-of-26) and five treys, but the Saints had the upper hand in charity-stripe conversions with six points off nine attempts compared to the visitors' 3-fof-3 showing in the same category.

The Saints countered in the opening two minutes of the second half with a four-point run to recapture the lead, an advantage USF would be able to hold until the final seconds of regulation.  Viterbo was able to stem the tide, however, and began to cut into its deficit with a 7-0 scoring burst after a hard-fought layup from Brady Cooper gave the Saints their largest lead of the game (60-52) at the 10-minute mark.  Four USF turnovers during the four-minute run would benefit the V-Hawks in coming to withing one point (60-59), before a back-and-forth-battle ensued for the remainder of regulation.  After Viterbo tied the game with a three-pointer on its final possession, USF had a chance to end it, but a missed jumper at the buzzer kept the score knotted at 72-72 and forced overtime.

Going into overtime, St. Francis remained composed as the two sides traded scores and stayed within a one score game over the first 4:30 of play.  Greyson Harrington gave the Saints their first lead of the extra session with a crowd-raising three pointer, while Nunnally later provided the Saints with its final lead of the night (77-76) at the 2:38 mark with a clutch jumper as time expired on the shot clock.  Free throws would account for all but two of the game's remaining nine points between the two teams with Moore delivering the dagger after sinking both of his free throw attempts with five seconds remaining, allowing the Saints to celebrate the season-opening 83-79 win.

St. Francis out-scored the guests 11-5 on second-chance points throughout the game, highlighted by eight offensive rebounds among its 34 total.  The Saints also claimed a 34-24 advantage on points in the paint, but lost the battle in turnovers, permitting 20 Viterbo points to be scored off turnovers compared to USF's seven.

Nunnally led the Saints with his 16 points, while Small chipped in 15 and also gained top honors in rebounds (nine).  Damarcies Moore added another 13 points and six rebounds in his USF debut, and Delshawn Simms contributed 11 points and a trio of three-pointers.  Moore and Coleton Hansen combined to convert 10-of-13 attempts from the charity stripe as part of a 19-of-25 total team showing for USF.

Landon Thousand topped Viterbo's chart with 18 points.  Carson Koepnick provided another 13 points for the V-Hawks.

Up Next
The Saints will take the court again Saturday afternoon when they face-off against Trinity Christian College in another CCAC matchup.  Gametime is slated for 3:00pm in Palos Heights, Ill.

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