Thomas Lahart hit a pair of free throws with 36 seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 91-91 and force overtime. After Walters converted inside for Wilkes to start the extra session, Kyle Myrick connected on two charity tosses with 4:39 on the clock to knot the count at 93-93.
Walters would put Wilkes on top for good with 4:36 left when he was fouled and calmly sank both free throws to put his team on top 95-93. After a Lions turnover, Matt Gould canned two charity shots at the 4:01 mark to extend the Colonels lead to 97-93. A Myrick field goal at 2:58 would pull Lincoln back within two points, 99-97.
The Colonels would put the game away by out-scoring Lincoln 8-2 down the stretch. Michael Constantine drilled a three-pointer to provide Wilkes with a 102-97 advantage with 1:46 left. After Myrick scored on a drive to close the gap to 102-99, John Sclafani hit two free throws with 30 seconds remaining to make it 104-99. After a Lincoln missed field goal, Steve Kline was fouled for the Colonels and hit both of his attempts to up the lead to 106-99. Walters would tack on the game’s final point with a free throw with 11 seconds left.
The first half was a seesaw battle that featured seven ties and 14 lead changes. Wilkes held the biggest lead of the half, 49-41, on a three-point play by Walters with 57 seconds left in the stanza. A basket by Thomas Hickson would cut the Wilkes lead to 49-43 at intermission.
The second period was just as even. Their were eight ties and 14 lead changes in the final 20 minutes. Lincoln held an 88-87 lead following a Lahart field goal with 2:45 left. Chris Shovlin would answer for Wilkes with a driving basket that gave the Colonels an 89-88 advantage at the 2:06 mark. Myrick would follow by connecting on one-of-two free throws to tie the game at 89-89 with 1:41 left. Walters would put the Colonels on top 91-89 with a basket inside at the 1:20 mark, but Lahart’s two free throws would force overtime.
Walters was 12-for-14 from the field and 10-for-15 from the free throw line on his way to his 34-point performance. Along with his 15 rebounds, he also chipped in with six blocked shots, four assists and three steals.
Shovlin contributed 26 points, including six three-point field goals, seven rebounds and eight assists. Constantine added 17 tallies, while Kline finished the night with 11 points, six boards and seven assists.
Myrick, who surpassed the 1,000-point mark for his career early in the second half, was 15-of-34 from the floor and had a game-high 41 tallies. It marked the seventh straight game that the senior scored 30 or more points.
Lahart added 21 points, including a 6-for-12 shooting performance from behind the three-point arc. Tyreek Byard added 12 points and 10 rebounds.