WINNIPEG – The Manitoba Bisons and Winnipeg Wesmen etched another all-time classic into their storied rivalry on Friday night, going to overtime at IGAC in front of a loud and passionate crowd to close out the fall term.
 
It was another physical affair from the two sides, who played with the relentless, in your face man defence that both schools are known for, while combining for 31 steals.
 
Manitoba tied the game at 67 with just 2.7 seconds remaining on a Cieran O'Hara tip-in, sending the contest to the extra session. Just ten points were scored in the five-minute OT, with Ryan Luke's three-pointer early on serving as the eventual game-winner in a 76-71 Wesmen win.
 
Manitoba cut into Winnipeg's OT lead on a Tito Obasoto bucket to make it 70-69, but Winnipeg responded on a Donald Stewart put-back. From there, both teams got to the line, including multiple trips for Manitoba. Tito Obasoto had a critical steal that led to free throws with the score 74-71 for Winnipeg, and Manitoba played clutch defence late, but the rim wasn't the host's friend as the Wesmen escaped with the victory in the extra session.
 
The win improved Winnipeg's record to 7-3, second in Canada West's Prairie Division. Manitoba fell to 5-5, tied with Calgary for fifth.
 
Kato Jaro scored a career-high 23 points for Winnipeg in the victory along with four steals, while Stewart netted seven clutch points between the final five minutes of regulation and overtime, finishing with 13 points overall including two three-pointers. As a team, Winnipeg hit nine shots from the perimeter.
 
Manitoba got 20 points from Daren Watts, along with a career-high 18 from Brandt Lenz, who both played 41 minutes. Ramogi Nyagudi added ten points and four steals, as did Obasoto, and O'Hara led all players with nine rebounds.

"We were obviously fighting. [Bisons head coach] Kirby [Schepp] said at the beginning of the week, realistically this game is going to be dog fight. That's what it is with the U of W all the time," said O'Hara, one of six graduating seniors on the roster. 

"We knew that we had to go in hard. There were just some mistakes on defence, we kind of lost it there [at the end]. It's still so fun to play these U of W games when everyone is cheering. There's not many more of these left for a lot of our guys. It feels electric, especially when it's close. You know your school has your back. It makes it ten times more fun and memorable."
 
It was a fast-paced, full throttle battle from the opening tip-off. Winnipeg opened up a lead of as much as seven in the first, led by six points from Jaro. Part of that total came from a three following an Ashton Uwamaliya block, with Emmanuel Ugbah finding Jaro in transition.
 
But Manitoba pushed back, ending the quarter on an 11-0 run in the final four minutes to take a 17-13 lead. The highlight was a Lenz steal that led to a Manyang Tong one-handed slam that got the crowd to their feet.
 
Overall, Manitoba forced ten Winnipeg turnovers, with five different players adding a steal, led by two from Jonam Kazadi, who stepped up with O'Hara on the bench early in the first half with two fouls. Lenz led all scorers with seven points, including a buzzer beater where he kissed the ball off glass.

"I didn't play any of the second quarter, and really much of the second half of the first quarter. You get in your own head, you want to play, but Jonam went in and he played excellent," said O'Hara. 

"He took the moment to shine. If you know you have players that will back you up, it makes it a lot easier to come in knowing that the game is still going."
 
Just eight combined points were scored in the opening five minutes of the second due to suffocating defence and a collective effort on the glass.
 
The contest opened up in the back half, with Jaro giving Winnipeg a 24-20 lead on a four-point play after he was fouled while shooting a triple.

Watts responded with four points for the Bisons on two tough takes with multiple Wesmen draped on him under the bucket. He added an assist on a great find to Lenz, who cashed from three and led Manitoba with 12 points, including another buzzer beater off the window.
 
But it was the Wesmen who led by five at the break thanks to ten points from Jaro. He was three-for-three from distance after 20, while the Bisons were two-for-nine. Overall Winnipeg shot 45 percent from beyond the arc.
 
The two sides kept the tempo high in the second half. Watts for the Herd and Ryan Luke for Winnipeg had emphatic blocks in the early stages as both sides demonstrated their trademark defence.
 
Offensively, Watts and Jaro took centre stage, combining for 15 points in the first five minutes. The Bisons went on an 8-0 run early to lead 33-37 thanks to a Watts three, but Jaro had the answer, going on a five-point run of his own including a steal and one in transition. He entered the fourth leading all scorers with 23 points.
 
Winnipeg broke the third quarter open late from distance, hitting two threes in quick succession in the final minute. They led 54-44 after three, shooting 45.6 from beyond the arc on seven makes, while Manitoba shot 18.8 percent on three makes.
 
Winnipeg led by as much as ten in the fourth quarter, but Manitoba battled back with their defence. Nyagudi had a steal and one-handed dunk in the hosts's comeback, while also sinking a three with a man in his face to cut Winnipeg's lead to three with two minutes to go.
 
Manitoba's no quit effort on the glass also paid off late, as O'Hara and Obasoto grabbed rebounds that eventually led to a Lenz three, and one possession later, O'Hara tipped in Lenz's layup attempt to send the game to OT.
 
From there, Winnipeg held on, getting key buckets from Luke and Stewart to escape with a key win.
 
Both teams are now off for the winter break.