NEW ORLEANS, La. -- Despite maintaining some form of a lead for a majority of the contest, the Nicholls State University men's basketball program (15-6, 12-2 SLC) required a buzzer-beating banked-in triple from Ty Gordon to force a decisive overtime in Saturday evening's Southland road clash against in-state rival New Orleans (6-14, 5-7 SLC), eventually outgunning the Privateers throughout a thrilling extra period to secure a 105-101 victory at Lakefront Arena, notching the Red & Gray's fifth-consecutive league win behind the team's top offensive performance of the 2020-21 campaign.

As the opening period progressed, the Colonels consistently managed to look more-and-more dominant, building multiple double-digit leads behind a blazing 57.9 (22-of-38) shooting percentage before heading to the locker room up seven. The second half, however, quickly turned sour for the Red & Gray, as the team's cushion evaporated throughout the opening stretch, allowing UNO the space needed to secure a seemingly-solid six-point edge with just under two minutes remaining.

Following Gordon's game-tying stunner as regulation expired, Nicholls transformed back into first-half form near immediately, kicking off overtime on an 8-0 run before finishing the five-minute period a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor, including 3-for-3 at the three-point line, along with a key 7-of-10 at the charity stripe.
 

For those seeking an up-close-and-personal look at the buzzer-beating heroics from @JTG_03...here's to hoping the senior called that bank shot!

Appreciate the assist from the @UNOPrivateers Sports Network.#NvsEveryone #NextLevel #GeauxColonels pic.twitter.com/A3YfDXYhOR

— Nicholls MBB (@Nicholls_MBB) February 28, 2021

 
KEY STORYLINES & STATISTICS
-- For the night, Nicholls finished shooting 51.3 percent (39-of-76) from the field, 44.0 percent (11-of-25) from long range and 64.0 percent (16-of-25) at the free throw line.
-- With the win, the Colonels lock down the team's fifth season sweep of a Southland opponent -- the Privateers join Lamar, Southeastern Louisiana, Central Arkansas & HBU -- and continue to exert pressure on the other three top programs within the league, watching as both Abilene Christian and Stephen F. Austin stumbled in conference matchups at Central Arkansas and Lamar, respectively, earlier in the evening.
-- Individually, redshirt junior Najee Garvin composed a colossal effort after sitting out the midweek matchup against HBU on Wednesday, posting a team-best 28 points and 14 rebounds in just his second-ever collegiate double-double. The South Carolina native proved nigh unstoppable across 36 minutes of action, closing out the game 12-of-20 from the floor and 1-of-2 beyond the arc; notably, Garvin drilled his lone triple at a critical moment late in the contest, cutting the Red & Gray deficit back to just one possession with just under a minute to play in regulation.
-- Meanwhile, Gordon's buzzer-beating heroics stand as only a small fraction of his offensive contribution throughout the night, as the senior racked up a season second-best 26 points -- also notched double-digit field goals (11-of-22) with nearly five triples (4-of-9) -- to go along with six assists.
-- Fellow seniors Jaylen Fornes and Andre Jones rounded out the double-figure scorers for the Colonels, contributing 16 and 11 points, respectively, while combining for 15 boards as well. Notably, Jones continued his late-season trend of pacing the squad in assists, dishing out a year-best eight against the Privateers.
-- Last, but certainly not least, senior Kevin Johnson swiped another four steals just three days removed from setting a new career record in the category versus HBU (7). Along that same thread, the local Thibodaux product shifts to within eight steals of all-time program mark (James Banks, 1996-00 -- 247), meaning that, with three guaranteed games left on the schedule (vs. Northwestern State, at McNeese and SLC Tournament G#1), Johnson now has both the ability and opportunity to potentially tie or break yet-another Nicholls record.

UP NEXT
With the quick roadtrip out to New Orleans out of the way, the Colonels wrap up the team's home schedule with a Monday evening clash against Northwestern State, making up a previously-postponed contest with the Demons at 6 p.m. at Stopher Gym.

STAY SOCIAL
For more information on Colonels Men's Basketball, follow the team on Twitter (@Nicholls_MBB), Instagram (@nicholls_mbb) and like their Facebook page (Nicholls Athletics).