Amherst, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team picked up a thrilling 75-70 overtime victory over Daemen College on Friday evening at Lumsden Gymnasium, in a key ECC matchup between the conference's top two teams.

STAC improves to 21-4 and 14-1 in the ECC on the season, while Daemen falls to 17-7 and 14-1 in conference play. As a result of the Spartans' triumph, both squads are now tied for the top spot in the standings with just three games to go in the regular season.

Demetre Roberts led the way for the Spartans, posting 28 points. Grant Singleton (13 points) and Elijah Bovell (10 points) also scored in double-figures. Andrew Sischo (31 points), Ryan Salzberg (16 points) and Sean Fasoyiro (13 points) paced the Wildcats offense.

STAC shot 42.9 percent from the field (27-63) in the conference tilt, while Daemen shot 36.4 percent (24-66) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Eight players recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• DeVante Jamison led the Spartans with four assists on the evening.
• Demetre Roberts made 9 of his 21 field goal attempts and 9-of-10 from the foul line, while Elijah Bovell went 5-for-8 from the floor.
• STAC and Daemen pulled down 40 rebounds apiece in 45 minutes of action, with Sean Moore grabbing eight boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up six steals in the contest, with the Wildcats turning the ball over on 10 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in four team statistical categories over Daemen: Points off of Turnovers (12-4), Points in the Paint (40-34) Fastbreak Points (15-6) and Bench Points (27-3).

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Daemen held a 10-2 lead five minutes into the game, but STAC outscored the Wildcats 11-3 over the next six minutes and the game was tied 13-13 with eight minutes left before halftime.
• The host Wildcats took a 20-17 lead with four minutes left in the half, but the Spartans closed the stanza with a 10-4 run and the visitors in black, maroon and gold took a 27-24 lead into the break.
• Demetre Robert paced STAC with 11 first half points, while Andrew Sischo led all scorers with 14 points for Daemen.
• STAC opened up a five point lead, 38-33, following a driving layup by Demetre Roberts seven minutes into the second half, but Daemen answered with a three-point play by Ryan Salzberg and a jumper by Andrew Sischo to knot the game at 38-38.
• The Spartans would take a 50-45 lead following a dunk by Jerrel Kelly with just under seven minutes left in regulation, but the Wildcats answered yet again and tied the game at 50-50 after Andrew Sischo made two free throws with 6:10 to play.
• Neither team led by more than three points over the final six minutes of regulation. Two free throws by Roberts gave the Spartans a 56-53 lead with 2:26 left, before Daemen got a layup from Sean Fasoyiro to make it a one point game.
• STAC came up empty on its next possession and Andrew Sischo gave Daemen a 57-56 lead after he made two free throws with 11 seconds left in regulation. Sischo would then block an attempt by Demetre Roberts at the other end, but the rebound would go out of bounds and STAC retained possession with five seconds left.
• Roberts would be fouled while driving to the hoop and made one of two free throws with two seconds left to force overtime.
• In overtime, Sean Fasoyiro gave Daemen a 62-61 lead with 3:30 left in OT, but Demetre Roberts answered with a jumper at the other end and the Spartans never trailed after that.
• STAC's lead was 68-64 when Jerrel Kelly blocked a layup attempt by Andrew Sischo and then Grant Singleton made two free throws with 1:01 left to give the Spartans a 70-64 lead. Sischo scored with 53 seconds left, but the Spartans made 5-of-6 free throws via Demetre Roberts, DeVante Jamison and Grant Singleton to secure the win. 

UP NEXT:

St. Thomas Aquinas wraps up its Western New York road trip at D'Youville College on Sunday, February 20. Tip-off is set for 3:00 p.m. at the College Center Gymnasium in Buffalo.