Colonels drop first conference game with 78-76 overtime home loss to Lamar

When Jalen White hit a 3-pointer to put Nicholls on top 72-71 at the 4:20 mark in overtime, it appeared as though destiny was on the side of the Colonels.

White knocked down four 3-pointers in a first half in which he scored 16 points to help stake Nicholls to a 42-35 halftime lead. He failed to score again until he hit the shot in overtime to give the Colonels the lead.

The Cardinals, however, had other things in mind.

Following White’s shot, Terry Anderson answered with a 3-pointer to put Lamar for a two-point edge at 74-72 and a lead it would not relinquish as the Cardinals handed the Colonels a loss on their home floor 78-76.

“One of our team goals is we don’t want to lose at home all year,” said White, who finished with 19 points. “If we want to be at the top of the conference, which we want to be, we can’t lose at home.”

A layup by Anderson extended the Lamar lead to four points. The Colonels came back to tie the game 76-76 on a layup by Rob Brown with 33 seconds left in overtime.

Chris Pryor drove to the basket with five seconds remaining to give Lamar a 78-76 lead.

Byron Ireland missed a 3-point attempt with one second left as the Colonels lost by two points.

The loss dropped Nicholls to 2-1 in the Southland Conference and 7-9 overall. Lamar moved to 3-0 in the SLC and 9-7 overall.

Along with White’s 19 points, Brown had a team-high 25, and Jamal West added 10. West also led the Colonels with seven rebounds.

Anderson tied Brown for game-high honors with 25. Pryor chipped in 15 for Lamar. Cody Pennebaker paced the Cardinals with six rebounds.

A one-time lead of 13 points late in the first half for Nicholls dwindled down to seven at halftime.

Nicholls managed a lead of as much as 12 points in the second half when a 3-pointer by Brown gave the Colonels a 59-47 lead with 9:43 remaining in regulation.

The Cardinals, who went into the game leading the Southland Conference in scoring at 82 points per game, were held below 50 until the final seven minutes of the game.

Led by Anderson, the Cardinals got their scoring edge back. Anderson scored six of his team’s eight points in a span of 1:34 as part of an 8-0 run that inched Lamar to within four points of the Colonels.

Nicholls committed 17 turnovers in the game and errors hurt the Colonels down the stretch.

After two free throws by Anderson tied the game 67-67. The Colonels had the ball in front of their bench. When Ireland attempted to inbound the ball, he stepped onto the court for a violation, giving possession to Lamar with 50 seconds left in the second quarter.

Anderson scored on a layup to put Lamar on top, with Ireland hitting a jumper with six seconds left to force overtime.

“I thought they did a great job pressuring our guys. They forced us into some unforced errors. It was a great job on their part,” Nicholls coach Tevon Saddler said. “It’s like I’ve been preaching, we are having a hard time finishing the job. Like I said the other night, one day it was going to catch us, and tonight it caught us.”

White hit a 3-pointer only 30 seconds into the game. Known for his outside shooting, White had been struggling with his shot in recent games. The early knockdown from distance, he said, gave him a dose of much-needed good vibes.

“The last two games, I’ve been struggling. I think I’m 0-11 from three the last two games in conference but seeing that first one go through definitely built my confidence up,” said White.

His third shot from long range gave the Colonels an 11-5 lead. White’s fourth 3-pointer left Nicholls with a 28-21 lead at the 8:14 mark of the opening half.

The Colonels built their biggest lead of the game when a 3-pointer by Brown, a pull-up jumper by West, and another bucket by Brown extended the advantage to 13 points at 42-29 with 3:04 remaining in the first half.

Lamar managed to cut the halftime deficit to seven by scoring the final six points of the opening period.