The Hornets, who won for the first time in 13 chances on the road this season, were playing without head coach Jerome Jenkins, who was suspended for the game by the Big Sky in the aftermath of Thursday night’s loss at Weber State. The win proved huge for the Hornets as the team improved to 5-6 in the Big Sky and now sit all alone in fourth place in the league standings, a half game ahead of both Weber State (5-7) and Eastern Washington (4-6). Assistant coach Zac Claus handled the head coaching duties for the Hornets in tonight’s game.

After a free throw by Logan Kinghorn put Idaho State up two points (97-95) with 25 seconds to play in the extra session, the Hornets’ DaShawn Freeman drove the lane and scored an acrobatic lay-up to tie the game with 14 seconds remaining. Idaho State retook possession of the ball and Kinghorn’s three-pointer fell off the mark (0:04) as Jameel Pugh grabbed the rebound, and threw the length of the floor to Harris, who converted a contested lay-up (which rolled twice around the rim before finally falling in) as time expired.

Three Sacramento State players scored at least 20 points, comprised of Pugh (game-high 24 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals), Harris (21 points, five rebounds and a game-high four steals) and junior Chris Lange (career-high 20 points and eight rebounds). Lange, whose previous high was 14 points, forced the extra session by knocking down 1-of-2 free throws with three seconds left in regulation.

The game featured 19 ties and 16 lead changes as no team led by more than seven points during the entire contest. Idaho State, which went just 1-of-7 from the floor in overtime, took its largest lead of the game (seven points) at 64-57 with 12:35 remaining. Sacramento State, which knocked down 4-of-6 shots in the extra session, took its largest lead of the game (five points) at 55-50 with 15:52 remaining.

The Hornets (9-15 overall) had lost three of their last four Big Sky road games by three points or less, including two of those losses in dramatic fashion. Idaho State dropped to 9-15 and 3-8 in the conference as the Bengals and Northern Arizona (3-8) are now both two games behind Sacramento State with just three games remaining on the regular-season schedule. With two more wins, Sacramento State will clinch a spot in the Big Sky Tournament for the third-straight year as the Hornets would host a first-round tournament game if the season ended tonight.

The Hornets, who also received a double-double from sophomore Alex Bausley (15 points and a career-high tying 11 rebounds), shot 42.9 percent from the floor (30-70) and 35.3 percent (12-34) from the three-point line. Four Hornets had at least two three-pointers, comprised of Pugh (5-13), Bausley (3-5), Lange (2-3) and Harris (2-9).

Idaho State had six players in double figures, led by Kinghorn’s 21 points. The Bengals lost for the fourth time this season in overtime, including three of those defeats at home.

Sacramento State won for the first time all season when trailing at the half as the team had been 0-9 prior to tonight’s victory. The loss was the first for Idaho State this year when leading at the half. The Hornets’ 99 points were the most scored this season as the team’s previous high was 92 scored against Northern Arizona. In addition, Sacramento State had never won in Pocatello, Idaho (0-8) since joining the Big Sky in 1996-97 prior to tonight’s victory.

The overtime session proved to be a team effort as Harris (four points), Bausley (three), Pugh (two), Freeman (two) and freshman Schuyler McKay (one) each scored points for the Hornets. Sacramento State evened its record at 1-1 in overtime games this season and improved to 4-3 in games decided by four points or less. Freeman finished the game with a career-high 10 assists as Sacramento State finished with 22 assists, just two shy of its season high.

The Hornets return to action next week for their final homestand of the season against Montana (Thursday, Feb. 17) and Montana State (Saturday, Feb. 19). The team closes the regular season at Northern Arizona on Feb. 26. Sacramento State seniors Pugh and E.J. Harris will be honored prior to the Montana State game for their contributions to the program.