JOLIET, Ill. -- Behind Merrick Small's career-high 26 points and game-high 12 rebounds, the University of St. Francis men's basketball team earned its second straight victory over a league leading opponent Wednesday night by defeating Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference foe Olivet Nazarene University 77-74 in overtime at the Pat Sullivan Center.  The Fighting Saints limited ONU to just four points over a six-minute span in the second half and then held on for the three-point win in overtime to remain top the league standings. 

Coming into the contest in a three-way tie for first place with Olivet Nazarene and Governors State University, whom the Saints defeated 86-70 on Saturday, tonight's victory allowed St. Francis (18-6, 13-4 CCAC) to stay in a two-way tie with the Jaguars, who each now own matching 13-4 league records with three games to go in the regular season.

Delshawn Simms provided another 11 points for the Saints with nine coming from beyond the arc in five attempts.  Justen Morgan was also solid from the field, going 3-for-3 as part of an eight-point night for him.  Small, meanwhile, led all players with his seven assists.  Damarcies Moore (nine points, five rebounds, three blocks), Dakoda Joachim (eight points, four rebounds) and Greyson Harrington (seven points, four rebounds) also combined to supply 13 of the Saints' 30 rebounds.

After opening the game with a 6-0 run over the first three minutes, Olivet Nazarene (16-9, 12-5) found themselves holding just a one-point lead with six minutes remaining in the first half.  A pair of jumpers along with a three-pointer down the stretch expanded that lead to 38-32 at the break.

The visitors' lead would eventually increase to a seven-point advantage (46-39) at the 15:40 mark of the second half, where the Tigers used their mid-range presence to score their first six points of the half.  A layup from Simms after a steal on the Tigers' next possession finally broke the ice for USF.  It would be one of four straight baskets the Saints would make as part of a six-minute, 18-4 scoring surge to open up a 57-50 advantage with 8:20 to play.  The run would be capped with a three-pointer from Small, who accounted for eight points during the stretch and 13 of his 26 total in the second half.

Olivet, meanwhile, responded by sinking seven field goals in the closing eight minutes, consisting of two-three pointers to go along with five layups.  That resulted in the Tigers working themselves back to a one-possession deficit three times over that span, including a 66-63 score with seven seconds to go.  The Tigers' final attempt would prove to be successful after Keagen Holder sent the game into overtime with a deep three-pointer to mark the score at 66-66 at the end of regulation.

After converting at just a 14.3 percent clip from beyond the arc in the opening half, the Saints were 30 percentage points higher in the closing 20 minutes when they hit on 6-of-11 long range shots (54.6 pct.) as part of a 13-of-25 showing from the field in the second half to support a tremendous defensive effort in outscoring the Tigers 34-28 after the break.  Olivet would counter with 12 buckets of its own, which allowed the Tigers to keep the scoring margin tight for most of the second half.

After two tied scores in the extra frame, the Saints held a slight one-point margin with just under two minutes to play before an ONU layup allowed the Tigers to retake the lead (74-73) for the first time since the Saints' second half run with 1:21 seconds remaining.  Head coach Ryan Marks' club then delivered on its next possession with a clutch layup from Joachim before a crowd-raising block from Moore and two free throws from Joffrey Nunnally expanded USF's lead back to three points with 19 seconds remaining on the clock.  ONU tried to repeat its second half heroics with a three-point shot at the buzzer, but the attempt would come up short, resulting in the Saints closing out the contest with a 77-74 overtime win.

Authoring five blocks on the night, the Saints also recorded four steals, while only turning the ball over nine times on the offensive end leading to a nine-point differential (22-13) off turnovers over the Tigers.  St. Francis also held the advantage over the guests down low, connecting for 32 points in the paint compared to ONU's 20.

Up Next
The Saints will have two days of rest before traveling to Chicago on Saturday (Feb. 14) to face off against Saint Xavier University.  The contest tips off at 3 pm in the Shannon Center.

You can keep up with everything happening around USF Athletics on X @USFSaints.