HIRAM, Ohio (January 14, 2023) – Darren Rubin hit a game-tying 3-pointer at the end of regulation to send the game into overtime, and the Denison University men's basketball team pulled away in the extra period to pick up an 80-76 North Coast Athletic Conference victory on the road against Hiram College.

The Big Red would put three players in double figures in scoring, led by Rubin with 18 points and followed by Ricky Radtke and Scotty Dean both with 16 points. Rubin did a lot of his damage from the free throw line, where he was 8-for-10, while Radtke shot 60 percent (6-for-10) from the field and Dean sank four 3-pointers.

Denison would strike first in overtime as Emmett Burnside scored twice in the first two minutes to make it 74-70 Big Red, and then after a defensive rebound by Burnside, Rubin would go straight down the middle of the court for a layup to make it three straight baskets for Denison with a minute and a half remaining.

Burnside continued to play well in the overtime period and added a blocked shot on a Hiram layup attempt that ultimately was followed by a fastbreak layup by Dean to make it 78-72 Big Red in the final minute of the period. The Big Red defense also came up big in the overtime period as it limited the Terriers to 3-for-10 shooting.

Denison took the initiative early on in the game and jumped out to an 18-3 lead just over six minutes in. Five different players scored during the run for the Big Red, including six points from Aidan King and five from Radtke, while defensively, Denison held Hiram to a 1-for-6 start with four early turnovers during the run.

The Big Red went on to lead by seven points (54-47) with eight minutes remaining in the second half after a corner three by Rubin assisted by Dean, and then a 3-pointer by Dean made it a 65-60 Big Red advantage with three and a half minutes left in regulation.

Then with Denison leading 67-66 entering the final minute of regulation after two clutch free throws by Rubin, Hiram took back the lead with a fastbreak layup with under 30 seconds remaining. That was followed by a miss at the rim by the Big Red trying to take back the lead, and then the Terriers went ahead by three (70-67) after a pair of free throws with only 14 seconds left. Yet again, however, Rubin came up clutch with the tying 3-pointer to force overtime.

Denison's record now stands at 8-7 overall and 4-3 in the NCAC while Hiram falls back to 8-8 overall and 3-5 in conference play.

The Big Red will remain on the road for their next contest as they travel to the College of Wooster for a big matchup on Wednesday, January 18. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.