UNIVERSITY CENTER – Saginaw Valley State University turned in its second straight win by knocking off IUPU-Fort Wayne 101-97 in overtime.
     A pair of free throws by junior Vernon Malone (Kankakee, IL) with 40 seconds left in overtime gave the Cardinals the lead for good. They made their final six free throw attempts in the period to seal the win.
     SVSU led by as many as nine points early in the second half, but the Mastodons stayed close down the stretch and forged seven ties in the period. A pair of free throws by Steve Griffin with seven seconds left knotted the game at 82-82 and forced an extra period with the Cardinals couldn't get off a shot.
     Griffin opened overtime with a three-pointer, but sophomore Terrence Wright (Saginaw/Buena Vista) quickly tied it for SVSU with a conventional three-point play off an offensive rebound.
     The Cardinals scored six straight points in the final minute to put the game away.
     Junior Richard Rashad (Inkster/Wayne Memorial) had a huge game off the bench for the Cardinals, clearing a career-high 17 rebounds to go with his career-best 12 points.
     "Richard Rashad had a huge game for us on the backboards," said coach Dean Lockwood. "He had some man-sized rebounds."
     Malone also had a huge night with 24 of his game and season-high 27 points coming after the first half.
     "We needed somebody to come up big for us to win and Vernon did just that," said Lockwood.
     Wright finished with 19 points, while senior Rashard Carson (Toledo, OH/Rogers) added 14 and junior Sean Stewart (Tyler, TX/John Tyler) added 10.
     "Getting five guys to score in double figures really gives us a chance to win," said Lockwood. "And we did a good job of keeping (the Mastodons) off the offensive glass after the first half.
     IUPU-FW had 11 offensive rebounds in the first half, but finished with just 15. The Cardinals overcame a 21-13 deficit in turnovers, but finishing with a 53-42 edge on the backboards.
     The Mastadons (5-4) were led by Griffin with 22 points and Akanni Michael with 18 off the bench.
     SVSU improves to 4-5 overall and has a week to prepare for another non-league home game against the University of Michigan-Dearborn on Thursday, Jan. 6.

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