WEATHERFORD, Okla. – Damion Thornton knocked down a half-court heave as time expired on Saturday, but it left SWOSU one-point shy of Southeastern Oklahoma State as the Savage Storm escaped the Pioneer Cellular Event Center with a 76-75 victory over the Bulldogs.
 
SWOSU faced double-figure deficits in both halves before battling back each time. After falling down by 11 with 10:40 to play in the first half, the Dawgs outscored SE 18-12 the rest of the half and trailed 34-29 at the break. Less than three minutes into the second half, the lead was back to 10, but the duo of Thornton and Jaylen Williams led the Bulldogs back to within two with 4:22 to play.
 
The Bulldogs trailed by eight, 75-67, with 47 seconds to play before getting a basket by Kamden Gipson and three from Williams to make it 75-72 with 18 seconds remaining. Southeastern hit 1-of-2 free throws with four second left, which would be the difference as Thornton hit the last-second shot to make it a one-point game.
 
Williams led the Bulldogs with 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting, which included knocking down 7-of-13 attempts from three-point range. Thornton added 23 points and a team-high five rebounds while Gipson also reached double figures with 10 points.
 
SWOSU is now back to .500 at 8-8 on the year while improving to 4-6 as they near the midpoint in conference play. The Bulldogs are on the road to Arkansas for two games next weekend, beginning on Thursday night at Arkansas Tech.