RICHMOND, Va. – The Lions dropped a tough CIAA road game in overtime to Virginia Union University, 75-73, on Saturday, January 24^th in Barco Stevens-Hall. Four Lions scored in double-figures led by senior Tony Efese (Spring Valley, NY/St. Joseph Regional HS)'s 17 points.

The Lions forced nine first half turnovers that ignited their offense into 11 first half points. The LU bench outscored the Panthers 18-9 led by junior Chaz Sharp (Baltimore, MD/Xavier University of Louisiana) and sophomore Joshua Davis (Saginaw, MI/Louisburg Junior College). Sharp had 10 points off of the bench and sophomore Joshua Davis (Saginaw, MI/Louisburg Junior College) added six points in the half. Lincoln was 6-for-8 from behind the three-point line in the first half against the Panthers. Senior Tony Efese (Spring Valley, NY/St. Joseph Regional HS) and Chaz Sharp (Baltimore, MD/Xavier University of Louisiana) shot perfect from beyond the arc. Efese made three while Sharp made a pair of three-point shots.

The Lions also found success by getting to the free-throw line and knocking down 8-of-13 attempts. Joshua Davis (Saginaw, MI/Louisburg Junior College) made 4-of-5 from the charity stripe to lead the Lions. Virginia Union led 23-22 by the 5:53 mark in the half before the Lions ended the half on a 16-4 run. Sharp's back-to-back three-pointers put Lincoln up, 38-27 at the half.

The Panthers responded in the second half with an aggressive style of play by getting to the free-throw line for 15 attempts. The Lions advantage evaporated and with 1:27 VUU tied the game at 62-62.  Quaman Burton (Richmond, VA/John Marshall HS) gave the Lions a 64-62 lead with 1:17 left after two made free-throws. The Panthers marched down the court and forced overtime with a jumper leaving 39-seconds on the clock. Neither team was able to break the tie resulting in the game being sent into overtime tied at 64.

VUU took an early 67-64 lead within the first minute of extra play against the Lions. Tony Efese (Spring Valley, NY/St. Joseph Regional HS) gave the Lions a 69-68 lead with less than 3-minutes remaining in overtime. Lincoln's defense forced another stop and Joshua Davis (Saginaw, MI/Louisburg Junior College) scored a put back extending the LU advantage to 71-68 with 1:12 left. The Panthers tied the game with a three-pointer on the next possession. LU missed their next opportunity at the rim but the Panthers converted on a game-winning layup with 3-seconds left. Lincoln's final attempt failed and the Panthers won in overtime, 75-73.

Tony Efese (Spring Valley, NY/St. Joseph Regional HS) led the Lions with 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists. He shot a perfect 4-for-4 from long range against the Panthers. Chaz Sharp (Baltimore, MD/Xavier University of Louisiana) scored 15 points off of the bench along with 14 points from Joshua Davis (Saginaw, MI/Louisburg Junior College). Davis had a team-high seven rebounds and senior Kyle Aiken (Randolph, NJ/Randolph HS) recorded a career-best nine assists. Lincoln drops to 12-7 overall with a 6-3 CIAA record. The Panthers improve to 5-14 overall and1-8 in CIAA play.

The Lions next game will be on the road at Chowan on Wednesday, January 28^th in Murfreesboro, NC.