AUSTIN, Texas – Donovan Stafford's third basket of the game came with just under three seconds left to play and proved to be the game winner, lifting the Concordia Texas men's basketball team to a thrilling overtime victory as they defeated LeTourneau 89-87 on Sunday.
 
Stafford was one of four Tornados to post double-digit scoring totals as his last bucket brought him to ten points to go along with five rebounds and a steal at the defensive end that put him in the position for his game-sealing bucket in overtime.
 
Antoine Henderson led CTX in scoring and on the boards, posting a double-double with 20 points and 15 rebounds. The junior big man shot an efficient 9-of-15 from the field and came away with a pair of steals, adding stats on both ends of the floor.
 
The two teams went back and forth throughout the game as the lead changed hands 13 times, but after a tightly contested overtime period, CTX came away with the victory to earn their second win of the weekend.
 
In the opening minutes, the two teams traded baskets to bring the early score to 4-4, but a quick 6-0 run capped off by an and-one three-point play from DJ Pigford gave the Tornados a 10-4 lead with 16:53 to play in the half.
 
LeTourneau cut into the lead, but back-to-back jumpers from Jaden Ross extended the CTX advantage back out to 16-8 with 13:45 on the clock. Ross totaled six points in the half as he helped the Tornados out to an early lead.
 
Henderson began his work on the low block in the first half, finishing in the paint three times, and stepped out for a mid-range jumper to bring his first-half total to eight points and give the Tornados 29-24 lead with 6:07 remaining in the half.
 
A three-pointer from Pigford closed out the CTX scoring in the first half, and the Tornados headed to the locker room with a 37-34 lead at the break.
 
The Tornados opened the second half on a 6-2 run behind a pair of buckets from Henderson and a jumper from Ross, extending the CTX lead out to 43-36 with 18:32 remaining.
 
The Yellow Jackets answered with a 13-3 run, taking a 49-46 lead with 15:18 left to play, but back-to-back finishes in the paint from Caleb Elsey brought the score to 50-49 in favor of the Tornados with 14:29 to go. Elsey provided valuable minutes off the bench in the second half, scoring nine points and bringing energy to the defensive side of the floor.
 
The two teams continued to trade leads, a bucket from Henderson bringing the Tornados back within two as the score sat at 67-65 with 7:42 left to play in the second half.
 
The LeTourneau lead grew to as much as five points, but a pair of free throws from Stafford and a fast break basket from Pigford evened the score at 79-79 with 1:29 remaining.
 
After converting two free throws, LETU took an 81-79 lead, but Trevon Hester's last-second clutch floater tied the game at 81-81, forcing overtime and keeping CTX alive.
 
Dylen Scales opened overtime with a jumper, giving the Tornados a two-point lead, but a free throw followed by a three-point bucket saw LeTourneau jump back out to an 85-83 lead.
 
With 57 seconds remaining, Hester came through with another big shot, evening the score at 87-87 with a jumper.
 
After a flurry of missed shots by both teams, Stafford picked up a steal on an LETU inbound play with under five seconds to play and iced the game with a finish in the paint, lifting the Tornados to an 89-87 victory with his late-game heroics.
 
With the win over LeTourneau, Concordia Texas picks up its second straight conference victory in as many days, entering the holiday break hiatus with an ASC record of 3-2.
 
The Tornados will return to the court on December 28, taking a break from ASC play to host Texas Lutheran in Concordia Fieldhouse. This contest will close out the home-and-home with the Bulldogs as CTX looks to take the season series 2-0 with a 3 p.m. tip off.