The Northwest College men’s basketball team came out on top in an overtime battle against Central Wyoming in the Region IX North play-in game, defeating the Rustlers in Riverton on Saturday 97-93 to advance to the Region IX tournament.

NORTHWEST 97, CENTRAL WYOMING 93 (OT)

Hoping to pull off the upset on the road the No. 6 seeded Trappers (14-17 overall) knew they would need to keep it close against the No. 3 seeded Rustlers (16-15).

Both teams were battling early, as the Rustlers held a slight 13-12 lead six minutes into the game.

Northwest battled, but was unable to take the lead as the Trappers still trailed 30-26 with six minutes left in the first half.

Northwest finally tied the contest at 39 with just under two minutes remaining after a Krue Stubbs 3-pointer.

Despite the push, Central Wyoming clung onto the advantage it held essentially since the opening tip and took a 45-43 lead into the locker room after a shot just before the buzzer.

That story continued early in the second half, until Drew Larson made a pair of free throws with just over 15 minutes remaining to give Northwest its first lead of the game up 51-50.

“The guys did a better job of attacking the basket,” coach Andy Ward said. “We were good from 3-point range — any time you’re shooting well from the arc it’ll open up opportunities to drive.”

The Trappers clung onto that lead over the next five minutes, until the Rustlers regained it up 62-60 with just over 10 minutes left.

Central took advantage over the next four minutes, turning that lead into a nine point advantage up 69-60.

The Trappers made one final push to tie the contest.

Kolter Merritt scored on a putback with just over a minute left, and the Trappers got the ball back after a charge — still trailing 78-76 with 50 seconds left.

Larson was fouled and made both free throws with 30 seconds left, and the Rustlers held for a last shot. 

Central missed a corner 3-pointer and a last second heave was off the mark and the two teams went to overtime.

“We had a good game against them here in Powell and the game there was tight and back and forth,” Ward said. “I anticipated it would be that (again) and then some.”

Throughout the extra session the Trappers built and held a small advantage, leading by as many as seven up 95-88 after a pair of Will Hemme free throws.

A small outburst in 15 seconds closed it down to 95-93 with three seconds left, but Colin Hayes sealed it with two free throws to make the final score 97-93.

“We stayed in striking distance and made enough plays to pull it out in the end,” Ward said. 

Northwest outrebounded Central 44-22, grabbing 13 offensive rebounds compared to five for the Rustlers.

“We did a phenomenal job on the glass,” Ward said. “We doubled them up and any time you do that it really puts the ball in your court so to speak. The rebounding margin was the deciding factor.”

Larson led with 24 points, while Merritt had a 22 point and 15 rebound double-double.

Hemme had 19 points and led with seven assists, Hayes was the final Trapper in double-figures with 13.

REGION IX TOURNAMENT

Northwest will head back on the road to Scottsbluff, Nebraska, to take part in the Region IX tournament starting Thursday (today) through Saturday.

The Trappers will take on the host Western Nebraska Cougars (22-8), who won the Region IX South with an 11-1 record.

“Obviously they’re the host team for a reason,” Ward said. “They have good guard play and they’re athletic. We are going to have to play well. We’ve got to do a good job on the glass and take care of the ball.”

Northwest played Western Nebraska in Powell back in November, with the Cougars running away in the second half with an 89-72 win.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. 

NORTHWEST 97, CENTRAL WYOMING 93 (OT)

Total rebounds then offensive rebounds in ()

Points — Drew Larson 24, Kolter Merritt 22, Will Hemme 19, Colin Hayes 13, Krue Stubbs 8, Tessi Thong 5, Milton Rodriguez Santana 4, Isaiah Halverson 2

Rebounds — Kolter Merritt 15 (4), Milton Rodriguez Santana 9 (3), Will Hemme 7, Colin Hayes 4 (4), Drew Larson 3 (2), Preston Condie 3, Krue Stubbs 1, Tessi Thong 1, Isaiah Halverson 1

Assists — Will Hemme 7, Drew Larson 5, Milton Rodriguez Santana 4, Kolter Merritt 3, Preston Condie 2, Colin Hayes 2, Krue Stubbs 1, Max Postiglione 1

Steals — Kolter Merritt 3, Will Hemme 2, Drew Larson 1

Blocks — Kolter Merritt 1, Drew Larson 1

REGION IX TOURNEY

(All games at Western Nebraska)

THURSDAY

Game 1 — 1 p.m. No. 2S Trinidad State vs. No. 4N LCCC

Game 2 — 3 p.m. No. 1N Gillette vs. No. 6S McCook

Game 3 — 5 p.m. No. 2N Casper vs. No. 4S Otero

Game 4 — 7 p.m. No. 1S WNCC vs. No. 6N Northwest

FRIDAY 

Game 5 — 5 p.m. Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2

Game 6 — 7 p.m. Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4

SATURDAY 

Championship Game — 5 or 7 p.m. Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6