RUSTON – Points were very hard to come by Saturday inside the Thomas Assembly Center.

But in the end, Louisiana Tech rode its stellar defense to a 66-61 overtime victory against Sam Houston to extend its home winning streak to eight games in front of a season-high 3,141 fans.

Much like its previous game last Saturday against Middle Tennessee, LA Tech (16-6, 5-4 CUSA) needed a late comeback. Down five with 6:58 remaining, the Bulldogs did not allow a single field goal by Sam Houston (8-14, 1-8 CUSA) the remainder of regulation and used a 7-0 to help force overtime.

In OT, the 'Dogs used another 7-0 run to gain a four-point edge and then the clutch Sean Newman Jr. calmly sank six straight free throws to grab the victory over the Bearkats.

Sam Houston made its largest run in the first half, using an 8-0 spurt to gain a six-point advantage. Newman Jr. would stop the momentum, burying a three-pointer followed by a reverse layup to cut the deficit back to one. The point guard would also give LA Tech a 32-30 lead at the break after connecting on a three-pointer at the halftime buzzer.

However, the Bearkats would make four of its first five field goal attempts in the second stanza to retake the lead and force a timeout by head coach Talvin Hester with 17:21 remaining.

LA Tech would only make 12 points in the first 13 minutes of the second half. Even so, the defense was strong enough to stay within striking distance.

Batcho cut it back to a one-possession game at the 5:01 mark with a thundering slam. More defensive steps let to offensive opportunities like Jordan Crawford making it a one-point game on a tough layup in traffic. Then it was Newman Jr. scoring off the glass following a massive block by Batcho to give LA Tech its very first lead of the second half with 1:28 left.

Newman Jr. would miss a rare free throw but then make the second, making it 51-49 in favor of the Bulldogs. After over six minutes, the Bearkats finally scored thanks to a pair of free throws by Marcus Boykins with 31 ticks to go that would ultimately force the extra five minutes.

In the extra frame, Sam Houston had a three-point lead until Amaree Abram connected for his fourth three-pointer of the game to tie the game up for a seventh time at 56-56. It sparked what was another timely 7-0 run to put the 'Dogs up four.

The Bearkats made it interesting though when Boykin secured a three-point play with 27 seconds left in OT, but Newman Jr. sank two FTs and then sank four more to ice the game at the foul line.

Newman Jr. scored a game-high 22 points to go along with eight assists. Batcho recorded his second straight double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds to go along with five rejections. And Abram matched his stellar defensive effort with 16 points on the offensive end.

Wilkerson led the Bearkats in scoring with 17 as Sam Houston, one of the best shooting teams in the league, was limited to 35.6 percent from the field and 30.4 percent from long range.

QUOTABLES

Head coach Talvin Hester Opening statement …"It was a hard-fought game. But we fought till the end. I thought in a lot of different areas we got some good things. When they were being physical with [Daniel] Batcho and he was struggling, I thought how were we going to score. I looked up and it was 46-49 and thought this was the ugliest offensive game on television. But we started to move the ball around. Then we were able to turn some defense into offense to help get some easy baskets."

On Amaree Abram's performance …"I thought this was his best game this season, both sides of the ball. Usually when he is so locked in guarding, it is hard for him to have his legs to score. He is building up the stamina to do it. [Lamar] Wilkerson is an unbelievable player. You are not going to stop him from scoring at all. But I thought Amaree did an unbelievable job to maintain his presence."

On Sean Newman Jr. stepping up in clutch moments …"How focused he is late in games when they are closed. You can see how focused and how locked in he gets. It gets to a point where he is telling me who he thinks should be on the floor. And he is so smart. He takes what the defense gives him."

Guard Amaree Abram On what it took to win the game …"Down the stretch we got some key stops. We were able to stop [Lamar] Wilkerson a couple of times. I think the bigs did a good job fighting their bigs."

On defending Lamar Wilkerson …"I knew coming in he was a great player. We followed the scout and I guarded him the best way that I could."

Guard Sean Newman Jr. On entering overtime after the late missed free throw in regulation …"You just have to move on. It hurt to miss it, but I just had to move forward and I think that mindset helped me make the free throws in overtime."

On what this home stretch can do for the team moving forward …"I think this can help prepare us to finish the season the right way. We are now heading into the second half of conference. It really counts now."

NOTABLES

- With the win, LA Tech now leads the all-time series versus Sam Houston, 6-4. The Bulldogs snapped a three-game losing streak to the Bearkats.

- LA Tech won its eight straight home game and improved to 10-1 in the TAC this season. The Bulldogs have now won double-digit home games in 13 of the last 14 seasons.

- LA Tech improved to 2-0 in overtime games this season. The Bulldogs have won four straight OT games at home and are 21-6 in OT games played in the TAC.

- The Bulldogs improved to 13-1 this season and 32-2 over the last two seasons when holding their opponent under 70 points (held the Bearkats to 61).

- LA Tech improved to 4-1 all-time versus Sam Houston in Ruston.

- The Bulldogs improved to 7-2 all-time when wearing the throwback Columbia blue uniforms.

- LA Tech pulled down 41 rebounds. It marked the 10th time this season (third straight game) the Bulldogs have registered 40+ boards.

- LA Tech registered nine steals, the most in a CUSA game this season.

- The Bulldogs tallied seven blocks, marking the fifth time this season they have had at least seven rejections in a single game.

- LA Tech held one of the nation's best three-point shooting teams to just 30.4 percent from beyond the arc.

- Sean Newman Jr. led the Bulldogs in scoring for the third time this season, registering a game-high 22 points. It is his third 20+ scoring performance of the season.

- Daniel Batcho scored in double figures for the 21st time in 22 games, posting 14 points. He also had a game-high 10 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season.

- Amaree Abram scored 16 points while hitting four three-pointers (16th time in 22 games he has made multiple threes in a game).

- Sean Newman Jr. dished out eight assists, marking the 15th time this season he has had at least eight dimes in a game. He now has 198 assists on the season, tied for the fifth most in program history.

- Daniel Batcho recorded five blocks. It marked the fifth time in his Bulldog career he has registered at least five blocks in a single game.

UP NEXT

LA Tech will head to Lynchburg, Virginia on Thursday, Feb. 6 to take on the Liberty Flames. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. CT and will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network.