22nd-Ranked Wonder Boys Fall On Last-Second Tip-In at West Georgia

CARROLLTON, Georgia – Arkansas Tech Men’s Basketball was poised to walk away with its fourth consecutive victory since suffering an 87-72 loss at Drury on Nov. 17 here Monday evening, before West Georgia’s Da’Ron Sims scored on a tip-in with nine seconds left in the game to help the Wolves post a 66-65 victory over the Wonder Boys in Gulf South Conference Crossover action at The Coliseum on the UWG campus.

Sims’ tip-off capped a furious final four minutes of play in Monday’s contest as the lead changed hands three times, including Tech (4-2 on the season) taking a one-point lead following three free throws by senior guard Jeremy Dunbar (Niceville, Fla.) with 26.9 seconds left in the game. Dunbar’s free throws after Sims, who scored 15 points and added 11 rebounds, fouled him on his three-point attempt with UWG leading 64-62.

“Sims made a big time play at the end of game,” Wonder Boys Head Coach Doug Karleskint said. “We didn’t do a good job on boxing out in the second half on the boards or playing defense at times. We need to do better at grinding out on the defensive end of the floor.”
Following Sims’ tip-in, Tech junior guard Johnie Davis (Canton, Ohio) put up two shots that would’ve won the game, but they fell short as the buzzer sounded.

“We didn’t play at times tonight and we fouled too much, which allowed UWG to shoot 14 more free throws in the game,” said Karleskint.

UWG finished the game 13-for-18 (72 percent) from the free throw line, while Tech was 4-for-4 at the line.

Tech, who trailed 29-28 thanks to a 3-pointer by Ryan Godfrey just before the first half buzzer, used a 19-6 run over a span of nine minutes to turn a 48-41 UWG lead into a 60-56 lead following a lay-up by junior guard Matt Haney (Dardanelle, Ark.) with 3:51 left in the game. Tech’s run was aided by six points from Dunbar and back-to-back lay-ups by senior center James Giles (New Brunswick, NJ).

UWG, who improved to 3-2 with the win, used a 5-0 run capped by a lay-up by Brett Seljak take a 61-60 lead with 2:23 left in the game. Tech, though, retook the lead 28 seconds later on a basket by senior forward James Causey (Tangipahoa, La.), before UWG retook the lead 13 seconds later on a driving shot by Deion Sims. The Wolves pushed its lead to 64-62 with a free throw by Sims before Dunbar’s three free throws.

Dunbar led the Wonder Boys with 14 points in his first start of the season, while Davis added 12 points off the bench and Giles chipped in with career-high tying 10 points and he added seven boards. Causey had six points, seven boards and two blocks in the loss.

Tech finished the game shooting 40 percent from the field and 41 percent from the three point line, while UWG shot 41 percent from the floor and 50 percent from long distance. Both teams collected 37 rebounds, but UWG held a 19-16 edge on the glass in the second half.

In addition to Sims, Deion Sims added 18 points and Justin Cummings tallied nine points off the bench.
The Wonder Boys will return to action on Friday, Dec. 3 when they play host to Southwestern Christian in a 7 p.m. contest at Tucker Coliseum.