DeLand, Fla. – Senior guard/forward Garfield Blair (Orlando, Fla.) notched 26 points and 10 rebounds while junior point guard A.J. Smith (Cocoa, Fla.) scored 22 points to lead the Stetson men’s basketball team (9-11, 6-6 Atlantic Sun) to an 85-81 overtime win over visiting Lipscomb (8-12, 4-7 A-Sun) Saturday night at the Edmunds Center.  Blair connected on all 10 of his free throw attempts in the victory, which snapped a three-game losing streak.

Lipscomb quickly erased a seven-point halftime deficit and engaged Stetson in a back-and-forth battle the rest of the way as neither team led by more than four points in regulation.  Senior guard Kris Thomas (Lithonia, Ga.) drilled a three-pointer with 1:12 to go that gave Stetson a 62-61 lead and when Smith sank two free throws with 11 seconds left, the Hatters were poised to claim victory in regulation.  Lipscomb guard Michael Lusk had other ideas, however, getting a three-pointer to bounce around the rim and fall with seven seconds left to force overtime.

Lusk also gave the Bisons the initial lead in the extra session, but once Blair nailed a three-pointer with 4:29 left, Stetson never trailed again.  Smith scored nine points in overtime as the Hatters led by as many as seven before Lusk again led Lipscomb back.  His trifecta in the closing seconds made it a two-point game, but Blair sealed the win with two last swished free throws.

“We really did a great job of hitting our free throws down the stretch and that’s what ultimately won this game for us,” Head Coach Derek Waugh said.

Both Blair and Smith made seven of 15 field goal attempts; Smith added four assists to his 22 points.  Junior guard Mark Lohuis (Vero Beach, Fla.) contributed eight points.

Lusk paced Lipscomb with 22 points on 7-14 shooting.  Adnan Hodzic tallied 17 points and six rebounds while Josh Slater added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Bisons.

The Hatters are back in action Monday at 7 p.m. at the Edmunds Center against three-time defending Atlantic Sun champions Belmont.  Murray Miller has the call on Hatter Vision; the webcast and live stats are both available at www.GoHatters.com, the official online home of Stetson Athletics.