Box Score LINCOLN UNIVERSITY, Pa. – In front of a packed house to celebrate Winter Homecoming and the 30^th Anniversary of the NAIA District 19 Championship Men's Basketball team, Derrick Washington (Washington, DC/Coolidge SHS) stepped up big and provided the night's biggest highlight as the Lincoln University men's basketball team edged rival Bowie State, 60-59, in overtime on Saturday night in a CIAA Northern Division game at Manuel Rivero Gymnasium.
 
“We never found our rhythm offensively,” Lincoln head coach John Hill said. “Derrick Washington (Washington, DC/Coolidge SHS) can shoot the ball and he did an outstanding job for us tonight. He could very well start for a lot of other teams.”
 
With Lincoln trailing, 59-57, Washington drove to the line and lifted a soft jumper over two Bowie State defenders to tie the game at 59 as he was fouled on the play with 1.8 seconds left. After a timeout by the Bulldogs, Washington sank the free throw and Bowie State's final attempt by Bryan Wilson at the buzzer was short as the packed house erupted onto the court.
 
“I missed that shot last year and I wanted to redeem myself this year and it was good to come through in the clutch,” Washington said. “The free throw was the hardest one to make. I had to block everyone out before I took the shot.”
 
Washington paced all scorers on the night with 19 points, including going 5-of-6 from the charity stripe. Will Cole (Newark, NJ/Cesar Chavez HS) had 12 points and eight rebounds before fouling out in the extra period as the Lions (13-9 overall, 6-6 CIAA, 4-2 CIAA North) were 21-of-58 shooting for 36 percent.
 
Bowie State raced out to a 16-9 advantage after a Dameatric Scott layup with 9:12 remaining, but Lincoln answered with a 12-4 run, capped by a Richard Glover (Baltimore, Md./Havre De Grace HS) three-point play, giving the Lions a 21-20 lead with 4:09 left.
 
With the score knotted at 27-all, Lincoln closed out the first half with buckets by Will Cole (Newark, NJ/Cesar Chavez HS) and Washington to give the Lions a 31-27 lead at the break.
 
The Lions appeared to have the game in hand with 12:08 remaining in regulation as Washington sank a pair at the free-throw line to give Lincoln a 46-38 advantage. But the Bulldogs (9-12, 5-7, 2-4) refused to go quietly in this intense rivalry and used a 13-2 run over the next eight minutes to grab a 51-48 lead after a Carlos Smith jumper.
 
A Ray Gatling bucket with 35 seconds remaining gave Bowie State a 53-50 advantage, but Washington's 3-pointer with 25 seconds tied the contest at 53. The Bulldogs had a few chances to win the game in regulation as Byron Westmoreland's 3-pointer was off the mark and Wilson's putback attempt banged off the back iron, sending the contest into overtime.
 
In the extra period, Westmoreland's free throw with 44 seconds left gave the Bulldogs a 58-57 lead and a free throw by Wilson extend the margin to 59-57, which set the stage for Washington's heroics.
 
Najee White led the way for the Bulldogs with 14 points. Wilson added 11 points and six rebounds, while Westmoreland chipped in with nine points and nine boards as Bowie State shot 33 percent (19-of-57) from the field.
 
Lincoln takes to the road one final time during the regular season as the Lions travel to Elizabeth City, N.C., to meet Elizabeth City State in a CIAA Northern Division contest. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 13, from the R.L. Vaughn Center.
 
Lions Notebook: Lincoln sweeps the season series with Bowie State…Both contests this season have been in overtime…The Lions have played two consecutive overtime games, going 1-1…Lincoln is 2-1 in overtime contests this year...The Lions held the edge in second-chance points, 13-10, and in bench points, 45-22…With the win, Lincoln improved to 4-4 at home…The Lions out-rebounded the Bulldogs, 43-39…Lincoln finished with nine assists, six blocked shots and four steals.