Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Men's Hoops Outlasts Warner 106-99
12/11/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 11, 2009
BOCA RATON, FL - Forwards DeMonte Simpson and Brett Royster combined for 39 points, 24 rebounds and nine blocks in Florida Atlantic University's 106-99 win over Warner on Thursday night. The triple overtime game is the longest in FAU men's basketball history.
Royster had 23 points, 13 rebounds and seven blocks in 51 minutes. All four totals were career highs for the junior. Simpson added a career-high 16 points and 11 rebounds in 44 minutes. The Owls trailed by as many 13 in the first half, but rallied to within four at the break, trailing 38-34.
Warner got out to a fast start in the second half, building the lead back up to as many as a dozen at the 13:00 mark. FAU trailed by 10 when Simpson and Royster combined for a 10-0 run to tie the game at 60. The game was tied at 68 and the Owls had the ball and chance to win the game, but Raymond Taylor's three-pointer at the buzzer fell short.
FAU trailed by one in the first overtime when Greg Gantt was fouled at the buzzer. Gantt split a pair of free throws to send the game to a second overtime. This time, Warner trailed late in the period when Dennis Bender was fouled with three seconds left and his two free throws tied the game and forced a third overtime with the score tied at 92. The score was tied at 95 in overtime number three when FAU went on a 9-2 run to ice the game.
Taylor scored 16 points after regulation, on his way to matching his career-high with 25.
FAU will hit the road to open Sun Belt play this weekend, starting Saturday at Louisiana-Lafayette. Saturday's game will tip-off at 2 p.m. eastern and will be televised locally on CSS as part of the Sun Belt Network package and will also be available on ESPN360.com.
