Men’s basketball officially punched its ticket to Cleveland with a 54-51 overtime victory over Bowling Green in the first round of the MAC Tournament at the Convocation Center March 10.

With 25 seconds left at the end of regulation, guard Aaric Armstead split a pair at the free throw line to put the Huskies up 49-46. On the Falcons’ issuing possession, forward Richaun Holmes missed a deep 3-point attempt that was tipped back out by center Cameron Black to wide-open guard Jehvon Clarke. Clarke knocked down the triple to tie the game with one second remaining.

“It was a big three,” said Bowling Green coach Louis Orr. “It reminded me of the Miami Heat and the Ray Allen shot, where whoever the guy was that tapped it out to him and he hit a 3 to send the game to overtime. I mean, Cameron Black made a great play… . But that was a big 3 and it gave us a second life.”

In overtime, the Huskies scored the first four points to jump out to a 53-49 lead. Wing Darrell Bowie made a steal and finished a layup at the other end while center Jordan Threloff scored on a tip in. Clarke scored on a layup to bring it back to within one and Threloff knocked down one free throw to put the Huskies up 54-51 with 15 seconds left. Clarke got another look at a game-tying 3-pointer but came up short as guard Travon Baker contested the shot.

“You know they went three for 14. I thought we guarded the line pretty good,” said coach Mark Montgomery. “Usually in basketball, the first shot doesn’t beat you; it’s the second shot. But the ball bounced their way, Travon Baker had a hand up; unfortunately, he hit a 3, stepping back, and credit him [Clarke] for that.”

Threloff led the way for the Huskies with 13 points and nine rebounds while Aaric Armstead added 12 points and five rebounds.

The Huskies (15-16) were once again propelled to victory behind their strong defensive play. They forced the Falcons (12-20) into a total of 22 steals while recording 17 steals as a team.

“Credit the defense, 17 steals, it’s probably the most in school history…,” Montgomery said. “We were active in those passing lanes and it just gave us a chance and it was exciting to get that last stop.”

Not only did the Huskies force turnovers, they capitalized on them by scoring 27 points off turnovers by getting out in transition. The Huskies were able to attack and get easy baskets in transition, scoring 14 fast-break points compared to just four by the Falcons.

The Huskies came out of the gates with a lot of energy early on, jumping out to a 10-2 lead. They did so by forcing five turnovers and scoring six points in transition. The Huskies would go into the half up 30-26 while shooting 50 percent from the field.

“It was amazing; the crowd came out and they really supported us tonight, and we fed off that energy,” Threloff said. “We got off to a great start and we were just able to carry that throughout the game.”

With the victory, the Huskies will move on to the second round of the MAC Tournament in Cleveland where they will matchup with Eastern Michigan for the third time this season and the ninth time in the last three seasons

This season the Huskies are 1-1 against the Eagles, defeating them 61-59 in double overtime at home before falling to them on the road, 56-52.

“I’m very excited to go to Cleveland. Everyone knows that’s our No. 1 goal, so we can keep the dream alive,” Montgomery said. “I’m excited that we’re playing Eastern Michigan because we’ve had some epic battle during the year and over the last few years with them.”