FROSTBURG, Md. – Frostburg has seen its fair share of success in overtime games this season and Wednesday night was no different as the Bobcat men rallied from several 14-point deficits in the second half to take down visiting Southern Virginia, 82-76 in OT.
 
The Bobcats push their overall record to 7-9 and 5-4 in league action. The Bobcats are also a perfect 4-for-4 in OT contests this season with two of those wins coming in the CAC.
 
Sophomore Lawrence Pettis, Jr. contributed on both ends of the floor for Frostburg and came up big when his teammates needed him the most.
 
Southern Virginia led by 14, 68-54 with 9:12 to play and again by 10, 74-64, with just 4:30 showing in regulation.
 
Frostburg closed the second half on a 10-0 run to send the game into OT and Pettis was a big reason why. He connected on a jumper to start the run at 4:30 and first-year Trystan Griffith hit a corner three-pointer for his first collegiate basket at 3:45 to cut it to five, 74-69.
 
Pettis knocked down two free throws at 3:09 and junior Edwin Cole connected on one of two at 2:23 as FSU trailed by just two. Pettis sent the game into extra time with two more foul shots at 1:52.
 
In overtime, senior Tyler Michael hit a baseline jumper 19 seconds in and SVU (7-9, 2-7) evened things at 76 when Justin Prisbrey hit a layup at 4:14.
 
Pettis answered with the game's final six points and he threw in two blocks on the defensive end for good measure. Pettis hit a jumper with 3:47 to go and he hit all four free throw attempts inside the final 21 seconds. He also posted two blocks and a steal in the waning minutes of overtime to help seal the win.
 
Pettis finished the evening with 24 points on 7-of-14 shooting and was a perfect 10-of-10 at the charity stripe. He also finished with five assists and three steals.
 
Michael contributed 22 points, while Cole added another double-double with 14 points and 16 rebounds to go along with four blocks.
 
Frostburg led in the early going but watched as Southern Virginia rallied to lead by 12 at intermission, 44-32. Aarun Rumbaugh hit a three-pointer just over four minutes into the second half that pushed the visitor lead to 14, 53-39.
 
The Bobcats started an early rally in the second half behind a 10-1 run at 8:29 following a three-pointer from the Knights. Michael scored five during the outburst and Cole capped the run with a contested layup off an assist from sophomore Daniel Alexander at 5:58.
 
Southern Virginia answered with a quick five points for a 74-64 cushion before Frostburg's final rally handed it the victory.
 
The Knights held a 44-34 lead in points in the paint behind a 30-point evening from center Cale Thornton. Prisbrey added 17 and Rumbaugh handed out 12 assists.
 
In total, the game featured a combined 10 lead changes and ties and the Frostburg defensive effort held the Knights to just one basket over the final 9:53 of regulation and overtime.
 
Frostburg State returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Christopher Newport at 3:00 pm.