Offensive Outpour in Overtime Leads Taylor to Victory in Home Opener

UPLAND, Ind. – Ten points in Overtime by Izaiah Day fueled Taylor's home-opening victory against Oakland City on Monday night. Day led the team with 25 points and five threes, while adding nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and three blocks in a stat-sheet stuffing performance.

The Mighty Oaks took their only lead of the extra period after a pair of free throws set the score to 81-80. Day answered with triples on the next two possessions, followed by a thunderous dunk for an emphatic 88-81 lead.

Day provided an assist for Nate Paarlberg, who splashed home a three, putting the game out of reach as TU then cruised to a 94-85 win in front of a raucous crowd inside Odle Arena. Paarlberg scored 19 point and matched Day with three blocks as the Trojans tallied nine in the victory.

The Trojans went on an 11-1 run, as Day hit a pair of shots from beyond the arc, late in regulation to secure a 78-73 lead with less than two minutes remaining, but OCU scored the next six points to flip the script.

Paarlberg converted at the charity stripe with six seconds left in regulation before a jumper in the middle of the lane clanged off the glass and ensured an extra five minutes.

Both offenses started the game cold from the field, combining to make just seven of 28 shots seven minutes into the contest. The Mighty Oaks found their rhythm with three layups in less than a minute as TU struggled to take care of the ball.

Eleven first half turnovers lead to 11 points for OCU (0-1), who took advantage of their speed with 16 fast-break points in the opening half.

The Trojans trailed 37-32 at the break, keeping it as close as that by converting nine of ten attempts at the free throw line.

The locker room cured whatever ailed both teams on the offensive end as they combined to make the first six shots after halftime and scored 14 points in the first two minutes of action. Dior Davis was the catalyst for the Mighty Oaks, scoring eight quick points and providing an assist to gain the largest lead of the night at 47-36.

Pete Combs began the TU comeback with four-straight points and an and-one opportunity at the first media timeout by Day cut the deficit to five.

The Trojans continued to slowly chip away at the lad eventually knotting the game at 57 after a layup by Nathan Baker. The tie was short lived as Davis splashed home a pair of triples for OCU.

TU stayed within shouting distance before making the late run to grab the lead in regulation. Zahree Harrison ran the offense efficiently and piled up a team-high eight assists to go with 14 points and a pair of steals.

TU took advantage of superior size with a 58-47 edge on the glass led by Baker and Combs, who grabbed 11 and 10 boards. Combs added 20 points for his first double-double of the season.

Taylor (2-0) travels to Takoma Park, Maryland to play Washington Adventist (1-1) on Friday, November 7 at 4:00 pm.