The Denver Pioneers lost in agonizing fashion on Thursday night, being defeating 72-71 in overtime by the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns. With the two teams struggling to get baskets in overtime, a Denver turnover with five seconds left in the game led to a foul on Louisiana Lafayette's Elfrid Payton, who knocked down a free throw with one second remaining to take the victory.
After the two teams traded baskets for most of the second half, neither team managed to score in the final 90 seconds of regulation. Those offensive issues continued for both teams in overtime, as Denver had a 4-2 advantage in the period's first four minutes and 40 seconds. A layup by Payton followed by a Pioneers turnover and another impressive drive to the hoop by Payton were enough to swing that advantage in the other direction.
Royce O'Neale came off the bench to lead Denver with a double-double, putting up 21 points and 13 rebounds. Chris Udofia, Rob Lewis and Brett Olson all scored in the double-digits for the Pioneers, as well. Louisiana-Lafayette got 21 points and 10 rebounds from Josh Brown, with Payton adding 20 points off the bench.
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