Anuna's jumper seals Falcons' OT victory

By MOC Sports Information
Published in Sports on January 6, 2012 1:48 PM

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MOC Sports Information

MISENHEIMER -- Another hard-luck loss.

In overtime, no less.

KC Anuna drained a 16-foot jumper with less than a second remaining, and lifted Pfeiffer University to a 91-89, overtime triumph over in-state rival Mount Olive College inside Merner Gym on Thursday evening.

Kendall Hargrove poured in a career-high 27 points off the bench and Craig Hayes connected on the game-tying basket with 17 seconds left in the extra session for the Trojans, who suffered their second OT loss in their last three outings.

A freshman from Woodbridge, Va., Hargrove matched his previous collegiate single-game high with 14 points in the first half. He led all scorers in the game, going 8-for-11 from the field and 7-for-11 from the free throw line. Hargrove also pulled down a team-high seven rebounds to with a game-high five steals.

Derek Staton contributed 21 points, while Dory Hines dished out a game-high eight assists.

Mount Olive (8-4 overall, 1-1 CC) wasted a 13-point, second-half advantage, but led 83-81 on Hargrove's two free throws with 24 seconds left in regulation. Pfeiffer's Danny Smith tied the game on a layup with seven seconds left and Anuna blocked a Trojan shot at the buzzer to force overtime.

Neither team scored in overtime until Smith's three-point play with 2:39 remaining put Pfeiffer on top. Hines hit 1-of-2 free throws with 1:27 left for Mount Olive's first point of overtime, but Elijah Matthews hit a 3-pointer to extend the Falcons' lead to 89-84 with 1:15 left.

Staton answered with a 3-pointer with 1:06 remaining and pulled down the rebound on a Falcon missed shot to give the Trojans possession with 34 seconds left. Hayes put back a missed shot to tie the game 89-89 with 17 seconds remaining.

Pfeiffer inbounded without a timeout and Anuna hit a fadeaway jumper from just above the free throw line for the game winner.

Mount Olive continues its three-game road swing Saturday at conference newcomer King (Tenn.) College. Tip-off is 4 p.m.