EASTON, Pa. – It was a historic afternoon in Kirby Sports Center on Saturday as the Lafayette men's basketball team outlasted Loyola in its first triple-overtime game since at least 1990 by a 97-94 score.
 
In the fifth meeting between the two teams this season, the most either side has ever played against the same opponent in a single season, it looked, as to be expected, like each team had the other figured out. For more than 50 minutes of action, neither could break through with outstanding performances from a number of different sources making it a game for the ages.
 
With 24 seconds remaining in regulation, senior co-captain Dylan Hastings made a big defensive stop on a Santi Aldama drive down the right side to keep it at 73-71 and give the Leopards the chance to tie. Junior Tyrone Perry made the key play to send it to the extra frame as his put-back floater at the buzzer was true after a Justin Jaworski layup fell off the rim.
 
Deadlocked through the first two overtime sessions, the Leopards jumped out in front by five in the third with 2:17 on the clock. With less than eight seconds to play, freshman Kyle Jenkins forced a steal and junior Sean Good went 1-of-2 from the foul line to force the Greyhounds into needing a triple to tie. Aldama's left-wing chance was off the mark as the marathon game ended in favor of the Maroon and White, 97-94.
 
Jaworski and E.J. Stephens were outstanding for Lafayette, posting 33 and 26 points apiece. Jaworski's 33 is his second 30+-point game of the season, registering a career-high 37 in the season opener at Lehigh on Jan. 2.
 
Perry, sophomore Neal Quinn and Jenkins rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10 points each, with Jenkins adding 12 rebounds for his first career double-double. Sophomore Tomas Verbinskis also chipped in with a career-high seven points on 3-of-6 from the field.
 
On the other side, Loyola's Santi Aldama posted 30 points and 22 rebounds in defeat. Those marks make him the first in school history to record more than 20 points and 20 rebounds in the same game and his 22 boards are a Greyhounds' school record.
 
The visitors had three players finish with double-double's with Golden Dike and Jaylin Andrews joining Aldama. Dike put up 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Andrews added 12 points and 10 boards.
 
The win improves the Maroon and White to 7-4 on the season, while Loyola drops to 1-7.
 
The Maroon and White took until the 15:34 mark for their first bucket of the day, trailing 8-2 after a Stephens jumper, but four from Jaworski and a strong take from Verbinskis down the right side of the lane settled the Leopards into the game around the eight-minute mark, trailing by just five, 15-10.
 
Six straight from the visitors surrounding the two-minute mark forced a Lafayette timeout late with the lead ballooning to its largest of the half at 33-23. But the timeout worked as the Leopards finished on a 7-2 run in the final 1:12 as Jaworski's floating finish through the lane at the buzzer sent the game to the break with the deficit at five, 35-30.
 
Loyola was a step quicker to start the second stanza, using a 9-2 run over the first four minutes to push the advantage to 12, 44-32. Verbinskis gave the Leopards a much-needed spark with five straight around the 15-minute mark and a Stephens jumper pushed it into the under-12 break at a nine-point deficit, 48-39.
 
Five straight from Jaworski, including a triple from the right wing to force a Loyola timeout, pulled Lafayette right back within four at the 9:13 mark, 53-49. The Greyhounds answered to move it back out to 65-53 at the five-minute mark, but a 9-3 run from the Leopards was the key surge to keep them in the game before winning plays were made at the end of regulation and in extra time.
 
These two teams head right back after each other on Sunday evening in Baltimore. Tip-off from Reitz Arena is set for 5 p.m.