Lindenwood’s Chris Childs scored 25 points in the Lions’ comeback win over SEMO, Thursday night. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
| Team | 1 | 2 | OT 1 | OT 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEMO (15-15, 10-7) | 45 | 33 | 14 | 10 | 102 |
| Lindenwood (10-20, 5-12) | 32 | 46 | 14 | 13 | 105 |
Torrance Terrell
Staff Writer
ST. CHARLES, MO — The Lindenwood University men’s basketball team picked up perhaps its most thrilling victory of the season, Thursday night at Hyland Arena, when it battled back from a 20-point deficit to defeat Southeast Missouri State, 105-102, in double overtime.
Five Lindenwood players scored in double figures, led by Chris Childs, who came off the bench to drop a team-high 25 points — 20 of which came in the second half and the two overtimes.
Starters Kevin Caldwell, Jr. (18), Brandon Trimble (17), Keenon Cole (16), and Cam Burrell (13) each reached double-figures in points and all played a key role in Lindenwood’s rally, which began following a made jumpshot that put SEMO up 63-43 with 14:55 left in the second half.
From that point on, the Lions outscored the Redhawks 35-15, and were able to force overtime, thanks to a pair of made free throws by Childs with 33 seconds left.
SEMO had the final possession in regulation time, but the Lindenwood defense forced the Redhawks into a tough three-point shot with the clock running down. The shot clanged off the rim, and before either team could get possession of the ball, the clock ran out to send the game to overtime.
In the first OT, SEMO scored first, but could only watch as Lindenwood made its first five shots and added a trio of free throws to go ahead 92-86 with just 28 seconds remaining. But just as the Lions did in regulation, the Redhawks rallied by making a series of shots of their own to force a second overtime.
In that second overtime, the teams traded the lead eight times before Lindenwood’s Remy Lemovou made a layup with 14 seconds left — his only basket of the entire game — that gave the Lions a 103-102 lead.
SEMO’s Aquan Smart missed a layup chance with 7 seconds left that could’ve put the Redhawks ahead. Childs grabbed the rebound and was quickly fouled. He then went to the free throw line and calmly made both to give Lindenwood its final edge.
SEMO had one last chance at a half court heave to possibly tie the score, but the shot sailed wide and Lindenwood walked away with an exhilarating home victory.
“What a great atmosphere tonight,” said head coach Kyle Gerdeman. “We are building something special, and I can’t thank our students and community enough. This team continues to fight. What an incredible win for us this time of year. We’ll get ready for Saturday and be ready for a great game.”
The victory lifted Lindenwood’s overall record to 10-20 and raised its Ohio Valley Conference mark to 5-12.
Winning Thursday’s contest sets up what figures to be another thrilling game on Saturday, as the Lions will host Arkansas-Little Rock at Hyland Arena. Both clubs are battling for the final spot in the OVC Championship Tournament, which will be played next week in Evansville, Ind.
The winner of Saturday’s matchup between Lindenwood and Arkansas-Little Rock will claim the final spot in the OVC Tournament and advance to the postseason.
Saturday’s contest is scheduled to tip off at 3:30 p.m.
SEMO 102
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 05 | Chris Harris | * | 45 | 11-13 | 1-3 | 13-18 | 0-4 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 36 |
| 03 | Aquan Smart | * | 42 | 8-14 | 3-4 | 3-6 | 2-6 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 22 |
| 00 | Israel Barnes | * | 46 | 9-21 | 2-8 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 20 |
| 14 | Nate Johnson | * | 27 | 4-7 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 4-2 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| 33 | Dylan Branson | * | 39 | 1-7 | 0-3 | 4-8 | 2-5 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 21 | Josh Earley | 20 | 4-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3-5 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| 04 | Adam Larson | 20 | 0-6 | 0-6 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| 11 | Evan Eursher | 11 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 6-0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 250 | 37-75 | 6-25 | 22-36 | 20-27 | 47 | 29 | 10 | 20 | 3 | 8 | 102 |
Lindenwood 105
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Kevin Caldwell Jr. | * | 42 | 7-13 | 3-6 | 1-2 | 0-2 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 18 |
| 02 | Brandon Trimble | * | 37 | 4-6 | 1-2 | 8-12 | 0-4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 17 |
| 24 | Keenon Cole | * | 38 | 5-10 | 1-2 | 5-5 | 2-5 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 16 |
| 05 | Cam Burrell | * | 32 | 5-10 | 0-3 | 3-5 | 2-2 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 13 |
| 04 | Jacob Tracey | * | 25 | 2-4 | 1-2 | 3-4 | 0-2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 30 | Chris Childs | 36 | 6-12 | 2-2 | 11-12 | 1-3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 25 | |
| 03 | Tommie Williams | 21 | 2-6 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0-2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 | |
| 42 | Remy Lemovou | 8 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 00 | David Ware | 11 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 2-1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| 20 | Brayden Foust | 0+ | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 250 | 32-65 | 8-17 | 33-44 | 10-27 | 37 | 28 | 11 | 17 | 3 | 17 | 105 |
| 2022 Lindenwood Lions Upcoming Men’s Basketball Schedule |
| Sat., February 25 — vs. Arkansas-Little Rock* — 3:30 pm |
| March 1-4 — Ohio Valley Conference Tournament in Evansville, Ind. |
| * – Denotes Ohio Valley Conference game |
| All Lindenwood home basketball games will be played at Hyland Arena. |