Ryan Montgomery posted a career-high 30 points to lead the Lee University Flames to a 76-72 overtime victory against Union University Saturday afternoon in Paul Dana Walker Arena. The victory was the eighth-straight for the Flames to push their record to 10-3 overall and 5-1 in Gulf South Conference action. With the loss, Union fell to 9-5 and 3-3 within the conference.
The Flames took a four-point lead with 35 seconds remaining in the second half before Tyree Boykin scored the next four points to tie the game at 66-66 with six seconds on the clock. Lee called a timeout to set up a final play, but Montgomery's attempt at the buzzer missed to set force another five-minute period.
"I'm proud of our guys and how they competed," said Lee head coach Bubba Smith. "When you send the game into overtime at home, sometimes that favors the opponent. It wasn't a perfect game and wasn't a clean game. There are still a lot of areas we need to improve."
Lee outscored Union 10-6 in the overtime period with Union tallying every point at the free throw line. The Bulldogs were 0-for-7 from the field but went 6-for-6 at the charity stripe. The Flames made 3-of-6 field goal attempts in overtime and converted 4-of-7 free throw attempts.
The Flames held a slim one-point advantage following a Montgomery free throw with 1:39 on the overtime clock. Following a couple missed shots, Quay Kennedy was fouled after grabbing a defensive rebound with under 12 seconds left. Kennedy made the first free throw to push Lee ahead by two. His second attempt missed but Kennedy crashed the boards to gather the rebound and lay the ball in before the Union players could react to extend the lead to four.
Montgomery tallied 17 points in the first 20 minutes, added 10 more in the second half and tacked on three more in overtime to surpass his previous career high of 29 points at Delta State on January 26, 2019. The senior also tied his career high with a team-leading 12 rebounds.
Kennedy finished the game with 13 points, six rebounds and four assists. Kentrell Evans was the third Lee player in double figures with 12 points.
Jason Landman nailed a pair of 3-pointers and added two more free throws to finish with eight points to go along with five rebounds.
LiDonta Hicks-Gentry recorded a double-double with 19 points and 16 rebounds. Boykin and Terrandus Smith were next with 13 points each. Smith also grabbed seven boards.
The Bulldogs outrebounded the Flames 43-32 and held a 14-6 advantage in offensive rebounds, although Lee held an 8-7 edge in second-chance points. Lee scored 19 points off Union's 18 turnovers, while the Bulldogs cashed in Lee's 13 floor mistakes for 13 points.
Lee currently holds the second spot in the conference standings. Montevallo is the only team left without a league loss and are 5-0. Alabama Huntsville and Valdosta State are tied for third at 4-2.
The Flames travel to Carrollton, Georgia, on January 9 to take on West Georgia before returning home to battle UAH next Saturday, January 11, at 4 p.m. Thursday's contest at West Georgia is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start.
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