Leave it for the final game of the day to be the best. One of the more exciting LSC Championship games in recent history, it took a step-back 16-foot jumper by Tarleton State’s Randall Broddie with just .6 seconds to play to give TSU a dramatic 87-85 overtime win over Eastern New Mexico.
The matchup between the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds was the fourth quarterfinal game of the day at Comerica Center, and saw a wild ending that included a game-tying 3-pointer by ENMU’s Zach Parker with just 10 seconds to play in overtime.
But instead of calling a timeout, Tarleton State put the game in Broddie’s hands. He let the clock get down to a couple of seconds before he faked a drive, stepped back on the right wing and swished the game-winning jumper. It gave Broaddie a game-high 21 points, and most importantly, saved the season for TSU, which improved to 21-9.
The Texans advance to Saturday’s semifinal round (2:30 p.m. tip) against the No. 1 seed West Texas A&M, which won both meetings in the regular season.
For the Greyhounds, the season will end at 13-15. ENMU had defeated Tarleton State twice in the regular season, both by a 70-68 score.
And for the majority of the second half, it appeared the Greyhounds would be able to complete the season sweep. Senior guard Devin Pullum took over with about 10 minutes to play, scoring five quick points that ignited ENMU to a run that pushed the lead up to 11.
But Tarleton, which had four of five starters finish in double figures, wouldn’t let the game slip away.
Broddie also hit a big 3-pointer to tie the game in regulation with 55 seconds to play and then after Pullum made two free throws, Broddie matched them with two more with 12 seconds to go. Pullum couldn’t get a good shot off just before the buzzer to send the game into overtime.
From there, it was more of the same as the Greyhounds took the lead but the momentum changed when Tarleton’s Jesse Hill stole the ball after a missed free throw and converted a three-point play for the lead.
Brandon Goldsmith gave the Texans a 3-point lead with a bucket in the final minute, only to be answered by Parker’s 3-pointre, which tied the game and set up Broddie’s heroics again.
Hill had 17 points and nine rebounds for the Texans, who also got 12 points each from Clashon Gaffney and and Josh Hawley and 10 points from Goldsmith.
The Greyhounds got 17 off the bench from Pullum and 14 points each from Chukuka Emili, Maurice Coleman and Parker.
Tarleton State Notes:
- First-year head coach Chris Reisman, who had a front-row seat to many thrilling games in his career as an assistant coach, picked up his first LSC Championship win in dramatic fashion.
- Tarleton State is now 5-0 in LSC Championship games against Eastern New Mexico, which had beaten TSU three straight times overall.
- The Texans are two wins away from winning their first LSC Championship title since 2014, when they won consecutive championships in Allen, Texas.
- Tarleton State is now 30-17 all-time in LSC Championship play.
- The Texans finished third in the LSC in blocked shots at 4.17 per game, but had a season-high 12 blocks against ENMU. Hill and Gaffney each had four blocks, while Hawley had three.
- Guard Isaiah Boling had a season-high six assists.
Eastern New Mexico Notes:
- The loss extends the Greyhounds’ draught to 16 years without a win in the LSC Championship. The last victory in the tourney occurred in 2003, five years before the conference moved the event to a neutral site.
- ENMU is now 0-5 all-time in LSC Championship games against Tarleton State.
- The Greyhounds shot a season-best 92.9 percent from the foul stripe, hitting 13 of 14. Oddly enough, ENMU is 0-3 in its three games shooting over 87 percent from the line this season.
- The Greyhounds outscored TSU 32-24 off the bench, with more than half of those points coming from Pullum, who scored 13 of his 17 in the second half.