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In one of the longest and most exciting games in Presidents' Athletic Conference history, the Saint Vincent Bearcats fell to the Thiel Tomcats by a score of 124-121 in four overtime periods.

Dillon Stith set a school record for scoring with 50 points, and 124 free throws were shot during a physical contest, which ended with Thiel battling for the win with just four players on the court after seven others fouled out. 
 
Defense dominated the game in the early minutes, with the lead trading hands several times.  The Bearcats finally took control of the game, as a Pat Jones three-pointer at the 13:43 mark made it 14-13 and started a 9-point run.
 
Thiel later closed the gap to just one, 22-21, before a turnaround jumper by Sean Kett ran the lead back to three with 6:55 to go.  However, the hosts countered with a three to tie the game, but they were unable to take the lead.  Ben Klimchock drove the lane and scored on an underhand layup to make it 26-24, starting an 8-0 run for the visiting Bearcats.
 
Over the next four minutes, the visitors were plagued by turnovers, while Thiel outscored SVC 10-1, taking a 34-33 lead after a pair of free throws by Eric Mallinger with 1:02 remaining.
 
SVC then kept possession of the ball for the final minute, battling for offensive rebounds.  With just moments left before the buzzer, Dillon Stith grabbed a rebound, passed to Isaac Turner, who found JC Howard in the corner.  Howard released his shot just before the buzzer, and the three-pointer found the net, giving SVC a 36-34 lead at the half.
 
Early in the second half, SVC led by three, 43-40, before Stith scored six straight points – on two free throws, a dunk and a layup – to make it a 49-40 game.
 
The tempo of the game then slowed dramatically thanks to a series of fouls and the ensuing free throws. 
 
With 5:43 left in the second half, Turner hit a pair of free throws to give SVC a 63-55 advantage, but the Tomcats then went on a 7-1 run over the next minute to make it a 64-62 game with 4:45 to go. 
 
Klimchock then led the charge to turn things around for the Bearcats.  First, he stayed with the offensive player from Thiel for the required five seconds, resulting in a turnover.  After Stith hit a clutch three from the corner, Klimchock came up with a steal, setting up Turner who drew a foul and hit both shots to give Saint Vincent a 69-62 lead. 
 
What followed were two unusual events.  With 3:16 remaining, a Thiel free throw went awry, but the ball ended up wedged between the backboard and the rim.  By rule, the possession arrow came into play, and Thiel regained the ball. 

Just 10 seconds later, Thiel's Luke Kochka drove the lane and Sean Kett stepped in for a block.  Whistles blew, and after a lengthy discussion the referees, by rule, determined that both the block and the charge were valid.  For both players, it was foul #5 on the day, sending both to the bench but giving SVC possession.
 
With 2:01 remaining, Stith scored to give SVC a 72-63 lead, but the Tomcats fought back, scoring six straight points to make it a three-point game. 
 
With 33 seconds left, SVC drew a foul but missed both free throws.   Reggie Goosby then scored with 21 ticks left to cut the gap to just one, 72-71.
 
Stith then drew a foul with 19 seconds on the clock, hitting both shots to once again run the lead to three, 74-71.   After a Bearcat timeout, Eric Mallinger scored and drew a foul.  The conventional three-point play tied the game with 8 seconds on the clock.
 
SVC had one final chance to win in regulation, but a shot from the top of the key by Stith hit the front of the rim, sending the game to overtime. 
 
Turner started the overtime period with a runner that put SVC up by two, but Justin Dade responded quickly with a score at the 4:17 mark.  Dade drew a foul on the play but missed the free throw and the game remained tied.
 
After a pair of free throws by Turner, SVC led 78-76.  Jermaine Hamilton then drew Klimchock's fifth foul of the night, with 3:11 left in the extra frame.  Hamilton hit the second shot, once again making it a one-point game.  Turner then managed to draw yet another foul with 2:48 to go, making both shots to put SVC in front, 80-77.
 
Hamilton then was knocked down and made two freebies, making the score 80-79, and a Mallinger layup with 1:31 left put the Tomcats in front, 81-80.  An SVC turnover returned the ball to the hosts with 1:02 to go. 
 
Pat Jones came up with a rebound with 27 seconds left, but Turner's drive was blocked by Mallinger, who then drew a foul with 13.4 seconds on the clock. 
 
Mallinger's second shot was good, and SVC called a timeout with 7.6 ticks left, down 82-80.
 
Stith then took a pass, drove through the lane and scored with 2.7 left, drawing a foul in the process.  However, he was unable to connect on the free throw, and the game went to a second overtime period.
 
After Stith started with two points from the charity stripe, Thiel's Josh Lumbus scored four straight points to return to the lead to the Thiel side of the ledger, 86-84.   After another Stith free throw, Josh Johnson drove the lane uncontested at the 2:15 mark to give Thiel a three-point edge, 88-85.
 
Once again, Stith went to the line and hit a pair of shots to make the score 88-87.  After a missed shot by Thiel, Dan Sinwell came up with a rebound, but SVC turned the ball over with 1:15 to play. 

Down 90-87, Stith scored one more at the line, then Thiel, working with a depleted lineup due to multiple foul-outs, turned the ball over with a travel near midcourt.  Turner then drove inside and was fouled with 24.6 seconds remaining in the second overtime.  He hit both shots, tying the game, 90-90.
 
Turner then fouled Hamilton with 18 seconds left, for his fifth foul of the game.  Hamilton sunk both shots to give Thiel the lead, and the hosts used their timeout following the second make.
 
After moving the ball into the frontcourt, Saint Vincent used its timeout with 12.2 seconds left, to set up a final shot.  Jones then sent the inbound pass toward the rim, but Stith was unable to grab it, as he was fouled on the way up for the ball.  Stith made both shots to tie the game, then yet another unusual happening took place, as a Thiel player with a clear path in front of him was called for a double-dribble near midcourt, giving SVC the ball with 8.8 seconds on the clock.  Jones drove the lane but his shot rattled out, sending the game to a third overtime period.
 
Howard opened the third extra period with a three-pointer, but Josh Johnson answered quickly with a layup, to make it 95-94 in favor of the Bearcats.
 
Stith, who was carving his shoe prints into the free throw line, then drew another foul and hit both shots at the 3:55 mark to give SVC a three-point edge, 97-94.  Another SVC foul resulted in the 96th and 97th free throw attempts of the night, combined, and both shots were successful, making it a one-point game. 
 
With six players on the bench after fouling out, Thiel continued to battle, taking a 98-97 lead near the three minute mark, but Stith made two more free throws to give the lead back to SVC.  After a steal by Sinwell, Jones hit a clutch three-pointer to put SVC over the century mark, 102-98. 
 
Up 104-103, SVC turned the ball over with one minute remaining, and Kahlid Smith made the most of the opportunity, hitting a shot with 38.9 left to give Thiel a 105-104 advantage.  Stith earned another opportunity at the line, hitting one of two, tying the game.
 
Johnson then drove and scored with 17.1 left to make it 107-105, and Stith drew a foul away from the ball with 7.0 on the clock.   Both shots found nothing but net, tying the game once again, 107-107.    Thiel was unable to get off a shot in the closing seconds, sending the game to a fourth overtime period.
 
SVC led 113-112 before Johnson scored with 3:40 to go.  After a Bearcat turnover, Mikael Pogosian worked his way into the paint and scored, then came up with a block at the other end of the court.  However, with 2:28 to go, another unusual occurrence took place, as a seventh Thiel player fouled out, forcing them into a 5-on-4 situation the remainder of the game. 
 
At the 1:30 mark, Geoff FuQuay hit a three from the top of the key, giving SVC a 116-115 lead.
 
After a free throw tied the game, SVC turned the ball over with 51 seconds to go, and Hamilton scored to give Thiel the lead.  Howard was then called for a charge with 36.8 left, his fifth foul of the night.
 
SVC was forced to foul with 34.8 seconds left, sending Charlie Thomas to the line.  Thomas, who had yet to score on the night, hit both shots to make it 120-116.
 
A wide-open Stith dunked to cut the deficit to two with 28 seconds left, giving him a school-record 48 points on the night. 
 
After a foul, Johnson went to the line, missing the first of two shots.  He hit the second to make it a three-point game, but SVC was unable to score on the next possession.  Thomas then drew a foul with 14.8 to go, and hit the crucial shots to make it a 5-point game.   FuQuay answered with a three with 6.8 left, and another foul sent Hamilton to the line.  He hit the first shot but missed the second, giving SVC one last chance.

Stith drove downcourt and took a shot from the top of the key, but it fell short, giving Thiel a hard-fought 124-121 victory.
 
Stith set three records on the night, with 50 points, 26 made free throws, and 58 minutes played.  Stith was 26-33 on the night from the line and 11-22 from the floor.  He also had 18 rebounds.  

Turner tallied 20 points, 16 of which came at the free throw line.  Howard (14), Klimchock (13) and Kett (10) also scored in double figures.  

Mallinger led Thiel with 29 points and 14 rebounds.

SVC is now 10-1 in the PAC, still atop the standings.  The team returns to action on Saturday at Grove City.