NCAA Division II Tournament : UC Riverside Beaten, 84-83, by Southeast Missouri State
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Guard Ernest Taylor made a 12-foot shot from the lane with nine seconds left in overtime to give Southeast Missouri State an 84-83 victory over UC Riverside in the semifinals of the NCAA Division II basketball tournament Friday night at Springfield, Mass.
Southeast Missouri State led, 82-78, after Darren Shepard made two free throws with 3:24 left. But a basket by Maurice Pullum followed by a three-pointer by Pat Vierra gave the Highlanders an 83-82 lead with 1:17 remaining.
There was no scoring until Taylor made the game-winner. Chris Ceballos had a chance to win the game for Highlanders, but his 14-foot jumper with two seconds left bounced off the rim.
Southeast Missouri State’s Mike Lewis sent the game into overtime when he made a three-point shot with 33 seconds left to tie the score, 76-76.
Pullum led all scorers with 27 points. Vierra had 17 and Ceballos 14. Taylor scored 22 points for the Indians (27-5), who will play North Carolina Central for the title tonight.
UC Riverside (28-5) will play Jacksonville State (Ala.) in the third-place game.
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