Final Stats | Final Stats in PDF 

HANOVER, N.H. -- The Northern Illinois University men’s basketball team erased a 14-point halftime deficit, allowing just 13 second half points, to force overtime but fell in the extra session as Alex Mitola hit a triple at the buzzer to lift Dartmouth to a 58-55 win over the Huskies on Friday night at Leede Arena.

Mitola went 4-of-5 from beyond the arc in the overtime to finish with a game-high 18 points after scoring just six in the opening 40 minutes.

Senior Aaron Armstead (Chicago, Ill./Hales Franciscan/San Jose City College) paced the Huskies with 12 points on four triples, including a game-tying trifecta with 20 seconds left in regulation. Senior Anthony Johnson (Chicago, Ill./Whitney Young/Purdue) added 11 points and senior Jordan Threloff (DeKalb, Ill./DeKalb/Illinois State) chipped in 10 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

“The story of the game is our guys didn’t give up,” said NIU head coach Mark Montgomery. “We battled all the way back. We held Dartmouth to four field goals in the second half and they shot 17 percent. Before (Mitola) got hot he was 2-of-10.

“I thought our guys played hard, we had a lot of good minutes from a lot of different guys. There are a couple things that we can learn from but we came out here and battled. If we play defense like we did in the second half and if it takes guys making NBA-threes to beat us, I will take our chances.”

NIU (4-4) had pulled within four, 40-36, until back-to-back baskets helped Dartmouth double its advantage to 44-36 with just over seven minutes to play in regulation before the Huskies finished the half on a 10-2 run to force overtime.

Threloff made a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to six, 44-38, and sophomore Michael Orris (Crete, Ill./Crete-Monee/Kansas State) knocked down a triple with 2:19 left, his only basket of the night, to cut the Big Green lead to just three.

Two more free throws by Threloff cut the lead to just one until Gabas Maldunas made a layup with 47 seconds to play to increase the Dartmouth advantage to three, 46-43. Maldunas missed a pair of free throws but the Big Green got the offensive rebound, one of their 16 on the night, and Maldunas converted at the rim.

Following a timeout, Aaron Armstead curled around a screen on the wing and buried a triple, his fourth of the night, to tie the game, 46-46, with 20 seconds to play. The trifecta knotted the game for the first time since the 6:42 mark of the first half.

On the final play of regulation, the Huskies came up with a stop as junior guard Travon Baker (Detroit, Mich./Detroit Consortium) got a defensive rebound and the game went to overtime.

NIU held Dartmouth to just 4-of-23 (17.4 percent) shooting in the second half, including 0-of-6 from three-point range.

In the bonus session, junior Darrell Bowie (Milwaukee, Wis./La Jolla Prep) score the first five for the Huskies on a pair of free throws and a triple, but Mitola matched the NIU scores with triples of his own as the lead swung back-and-forth.

Bowie finished with eight points, five rebounds and a team-high four assists.

Two more free throws by Threloff and a layup by sophomore Aaric Armstead (Chicago, Ill./La Jolla Prep) gave NIU a three-point lead, 55-52, heading into the final minute of the extra session.

The Huskies went 11-of-13 (84.6 percent) from the free-throw line in the contest; NIU had been averaging 27.1 free-throw attempts per game heading into Friday’s game.

On the next possession, Mitola hit an off-balance triple, his third of the overtime, to even the contest. After the Huskies couldn’t convert, Dartmouth had the ball with for the final possession and, with time about to expire; Mitola threw in his fourth triple of the overtime to give the Big Green the victory.

Mitola led the Big Green with a game-high 18 points, Maldunas added 11 for Dartmouth who evened its record at 5-5.

Tied, 17-17, in the first half, Dartmouth closed the opening stanza with a 16-2 run over the final seven minutes as the Big Green took a 33-19 lead into the break. Aaron Armstead led NIU with six points in the first half while Maldunas had seven to pace Dartmouth. The Big Green outrebounded NIU, 20-9, in the opening 20 minutes.

A free throw with 13:06 to play in regulation gave Dartmouth a 40-29 lead before the Huskies went on a 7-0 run, holding the Big Green scoreless for nearly six minutes, as NIU cut the deficit to just four, 40-36. Johnson made a pair of baskets during the burst, including an old-fashioned three-point play, and Aaric Armstead capped the run with a jumper.

NIU has another quick turnaround as the Huskies travel to South Bend, Ind., on Monday, Dec. 22, as they visit the 21st-ranked Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. Game time in South Bend is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT and will be shown live on ESPN3.