LAKES WALES, Fla. – St. Thomas (9-9, TSC 4-5) played in the fourth overtime game of their last five games.  However, their string of success in such games ran out as Warner (14-4, TSC 4-4), galvanized by Warren Hall's 33 points, was able to steal the victory by the score of 83-81.  The Bobcats have now suffered two consecutive losses in conference play.

St. Thomas had a quartet of players in double figures.  Chuckie Becton led the way with 20 points, three assists, and two rebounds.  David Santiago had a respectable stat line of 18 points, four assists, and six rebounds.  Mikon Hewitt had 16 points, three assists, and three rebounds, but will want to cut down on his turnovers.  Hewitt had four turnovers on the night, including a critical one late in the game.  Michael Walker had a good showing with 15 points, two assists, and five rebounds.

The first half got off to a slow start, with both teams combining to score only four points over the game's first four minutes.  Mikon Hewitt was first to get the Bobcats on the board with a jumper.  Soon thereafter, the Bobcats were able to find some offense from behind the arc.  Three-pointers from Walker, Chuckie Becton, and Hewitt helped build a nine-point lead over the hosting Royals.

A pair of David Santiago free-throws gave the Bobcats an 11-point cushion with 8:55 to go in the first half.  The Royals, however, continued to battle back.  A three-pointer from Keevis Tukes cut the Bobcat lead to two with 3:40 to go in the first half.  By the end of the half, Warner had completed a 21-13 run, which narrowed the score to 37-34.

The Royals opened the second half on a 7-2 run.  An Eddie Delegal jumper gave the Royals their first lead since 16:12 to go in the first half.  Led by Warren Hall, Warner continued their hot stretch of shooting, building an eight-point lead at the twelfth minute mark.  With Hewitt at the helm, St. Thomas would respond with a run of their own.  A tip-in from Santiago brought St. Thomas within one of Warner, with the score being 61-60 at the 5:38 mark.  Santiago would soon follow with another layup, reclaiming the Bobcats' first lead since the opening minutes of the second half.

The two teams continued to trade buckets over the final two minutes.  James Vice was twice able to slip behind Royal defenders for two critical layups.  After taking a one-point lead off a Jaime Anderson bucket, Chuckie Becton was able to find Vice under the hoop for a layup and the lead.  Hall answered with a layup of his own, on the other end, to give Warner the lead once again.  Michael Walker then found Vice, in the same position as he was moments earlier, for another layup and the lead.

Coming out of a Warner timeout, St. Thomas appeared poise to take the game with just one solid defensive stop.  Keevis Tukes appeared to end those dreams when he hit a clutch three-pointer with 13 seconds to go, putting the Royals up by one point.  Not short of their own heroics, the Bobcats were able to force overtime off a Becton game-tying layup with one second to go.

Antonio Ansley quickly got Warner on the board in overtime, connecting from behind the arc to give the Royals the 73-70 lead.  The Bobcats responded, again, with a Vice layup.  Another jumper by Ansley followed by another Tukes three-pointer gave the Royals an 80-74 lead with 2:23 to go.  St. Thomas was able to cut the deficit to one when Becton connected on a jumper with 47 seconds to go.

After a Bobcat foul, Jamie Anderson went one of two from the free-throw line, meaning St. Thomas would only need two points to tie the match.  However, a crucial turnover by Hewitt in the game's final seconds all but sealed the Bobcats faith.  Warner was able to ice the game at the free-throw line, eventually escaping with the 83-81 victory.

Warner shot better from the field, three-point arc, and free-throw line than St. Thomas.  The biggest disparity was in three-pointers.  Warner went 9-15 (60%) from behind the arc, compared to St. Thomas shooting 4-10 (40%) from three.

The Bobcats return to action on Thursday January 29, when they head up to Lakeland, Florida to face Southeastern at 7:30 pm.  The fire previously defeated the Bobcats 81-75 when they matched up against each other on December 6, 2014.

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