Overton, Pettiford help Auburn beat Tulsa 92-86 in OT for 1st NIT championship

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Kevin Overton had 26 points, Tahaad Pettiford scored 24 and Auburn took advantage of a late 5-second violation in regulation to beat Tulsa 92-86 in overtime on Sunday night and win its first NIT championship.

Ade Popoola sank a 3-pointer to give Tulsa a 76-71 lead with 1:05 left in regulation. Pettiford hit a 3-pointer with 44 seconds remaining and Elyjah Freeman made the second of two free throws following two foul shots by Tulsa's Tyler Behrend for a 78-75 lead. But the Golden Hurricane couldn't inbound the ball following Freeman's make and Overton buried a baseline 3-pointer with eight seconds left to force OT.

Overton hit his fifth 3 to put Auburn (22-16) up 89-84 and the Tigers led over the final 3:31 of the extra period.

Overton hit 7 of 13 shots and 7 of 8 free throws. Pettiford had four 3-pointers and eight assists. Keyshawn Hall totaled 11 points and 12 rebounds. Sebastian Williams-Adams added 13 points off the bench and Filip Jovic scored 12.

David Green had 25 points, Tylen Riley scored 20 and Popoola added 13 for Tulsa (30-8), which finished with the second most wins in program history.

Pettiford had 15 points by halftime and Overton scored 14 for a 48-31 advantage after jumping out to a 34-13 lead.

Tulsa trailed 55-35, but Green had six straight points and scored eight in a 12-0 run to cut it to 57-51 with 12:18 remaining. Pettiford made two free throws to end the run, but Green and Miles Barnstable followed with 3-pointers and Green added two foul shots to tie. Riley hit two free throws to extend a 24-2 run and Tulsa took its first lead 61-59 with 10:26 left.

Tulsa won NIT titles in 1981 and 2001.

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