FLORENCE, SC – Francis Marion University overcame a 15-point second-half deficit and then held several late opportunities to possibly win the game before falling 106-101 in double overtime to Peach Belt Conference pre-season favorite University of Montevallo, Thursday night (Dec. 18), in men's basketball action.

The Patriots (7-2, 0-1) saw their seven-game winning streak snapped in the squad's first double-overtime game in three seasons.  FMU will close out the 2014 portion of its schedule on Saturday when the Patriots entertain Clayton State University for a 3:30 p.m. tip-off in the Smith University Center.

Junior forward Dii'Jon Allen-Jordan led FMU with a career-high 33 points on 10-of-21 shooting from the floor and a 13-of-18 performance at the free throw stripe.  He also grabbed 11 rebounds for his third double-double of the young season.  Freshman guards Mike Davis Jr. and Detrek Browning each tallied 21 points, with Davis' total being a career-high.

Reigning PBC Player of the Year Troran Brown paced Montevallo (5-6, 1-0) with 23 points and 12 assists.  Seven of his points came in the decisive second overtime period.  Junior forward Ibrahim Johnson registered 18 points and 15 rebounds, while both Shykeem Jackson and Ryan May scored 15 apiece. 

Sophomore guard Bryant Orange, playing his first game as a Falcon, scored 14 points, including eight in the final 4:01.

Montevallo came out on fire, nailing eight of its first 12 three-point attempts and claiming a 35-25 lead. The Patriot scored the final four points of the up-and-down half to close the deficit to 45-40 at intermission.  The Falcons ended the first stanza shooting a sizzling 61.5 percent.

The Falcons scored five quick points to open a 10-point advantage early in the second half, but FMU later used an 8-0 spurt to trim the margin to a single point at 58-57 with 12:31 left. Freshman forward Jay Alexander capped the run with a pair of free throws.

However, Montevallo gradually pulled away to a 15-point lead at 77-62 with only 7:51 remaining. FMU then turned up the defense, holding the Falcons scoreless for more than six minutes.  Overall, the Patriots scored 17 straight points to take a 79-77 lead following a free throw by Alexander with 1:34 on the clock.  The Falcons broke the drought with two free throws by Parker Role with 1:32 left and neither team was able to score in the ensuing four possessions – each team having two shots to take the lead.

Francis Marion opened a four-point advantage, 87-83, late in the first overtime and owned possession of the ball, but a pair of turnovers allowed the Falcons back into the contest.  One-of-two free throws by senior guard David Brown gave FMU an 89-87 lead with 18 ticks on the clock, but Troran Brown knotted the score on a jumper and David Brown's 40-foot heave at the buzzer was no good.

Francis Marion held four-point and three-point leads early in the second overtime session, but Brown and Orange combined for a colorful 15 points as the Falcons hit 10 of their last 11 free throws to secure the victory.

Francis Marion shot 40.5 percent for the game, but only 4-of-16 in the overtime periods.  FMU was 9-of-24 from three-point range and 32-of-45 at the foul line.  Montevallo connected on 48.6 percent of its shots, including 12-of-27 from long range.  The Falcons hit 22-of-35 free throws.

It is the first time in 12 seasons that the Patriots have reached triple figures and lost – dating back to the NCAA Sweet 16 squad that dropped a 105-101 overtime decision to Fayetteville State University on Dec. 30, 2003.

12-18-14 7:55 pm at Florence, SC (Smith University Center)
UNIV. OF MONTEVALLO 106, FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY 101  2OT
UNIV. OF MONTEVALLO (5-6, 1-0 PBC)
Brown, Troran 6-14 7-9 23; Johnson, Ibrahim 7-12 4-6 18; Jackson, Shykeem
6-12 0-0 15; May, Ryan 6-9 0-1 15; Orange, Bryant 3-9 8-10 14; Slaughter,
Larry 3-6 0-3 6; Key, Kimani 2-4 0-0 6; Role, Parker 1-2 3-4 5; Fields,
Malik 2-6 0-2 4. Totals 36-74 22-35 106.
FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY (7-2, 0-1 PBC)
Dii'Jon Allen-Jordan 10-21 13-18 33; Mike Davis Jr. 6-11 5-7 21; Detrek
Browning 6-20 7-8 21; Jay Alexander 2-4 4-8 8; Dustin Jones 3-7 0-0 7; A.J.
Jackson 2-5 0-0 6; David Brown 0-0 3-4 3; Trevonte Dixon 1-5 0-0 2; Alex
Bryant 0-0 0-0 0; Luka Zivkovic 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 30-74 32-45 101.
Halftime:  Montevallo 45 Francis Marion 40
3-point goals--Univ. of Montevallo 12-27 (Brown, Troran 4-8; May, Ryan 3-5;
Jackson, Shykeem 3-9; Key, Kimani 2-3; Orange, Bryant 0-2), Francis Marion
University 9-24 (Mike Davis Jr. 4-8; Detrek Browning 2-7; A.J. Jackson 2-3;
Dustin Jones 1-3; Luka Zivkovic 0-1; Trevonte Dixon 0-2). Fouled out--Univ.
of Montevallo-Slaughter, Larry, Francis Marion University-Mike Davis Jr.;
Luka Zivkovic; Dii'Jon Allen-Jordan; Dustin Jones. Rebounds--Univ. of
Montevallo 56 (Johnson, Ibrahim 15), Francis Marion University 39 (Dii'Jon
Allen-Jordan 11). Assists--Univ. of Montevallo 27 (Brown, Troran 12),
Francis Marion University 12 (Detrek Browning 3). Total fouls--Univ. of
Montevallo 27, Francis Marion 28. Technical fouls--Brown, Troran. A-600