National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Oklahoma St. 69, Akron 65
When: 10:30 AM ET, Thursday, November 15, 2012
Where: Coliseo de Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico
Officials: # Gerry Pollard, # Steven Pyatt, # Mark Schnur
Attendance: N/A

Oklahoma State 69, Akron 65 (OT): Le’Bryan Nash scored 18 points as the Cowboys rallied in the extra period to defeat the Zips in the opening game of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off tournament.

Markel Brown chipped in with 17 points and freshman guard Marcus Smart added 16 points and nine rebounds for Oklahoma State (2-0), which will meet Tennessee in Friday's semifinals.

In the extra period, the Cowboys quickly fell behind 65-61, but Phil Forte drilled a 3-pointer on a fast break and converted all three of his free throws after drawing a foul on the next possession. The Zips missed their final two shot attempts on the ensuing trip down the floor and Smart drained a pair of free throws at the other end to account for the final margin.

Akron (1-2) trailed 33-32 at the half and pulled ahead on a layup by Pat Forsythe with 17:02 remaining, but the Zips could only hit eight free throws during a 11:38 stretch as they missed 18 consecutive shots.

But the Cowboys, who led by as many as 10 points, could not hold Akron off down the stretch as Zeke Marshall’s layup with 1:02 remaining tied the game at 61 and eventually sent the game into overtime.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The teams combined for 19 turnovers in the first half, but committed only eight miscues over the final 25 minutes. … Oklahoma State forward Jean-Paul Olukemi appeared to injure his knee on a drive to the basket late in the first half and did not return. … Brian Walsh posted his first career double-double for Akron with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Top Game Performances
 
Akron   Oklahoma St.
Brian Walsh 14 Scoring Le'Bryan Nash 20
Alex Abreu 6 Assists Marcus Smart 3
Zeke Marshall 10 Rebounds Marcus Smart 9
Zeke Marshall 8 Free Throws Made Le'Bryan Nash 8
Brian Walsh 2 Steals Marcus Smart 4
Pat Forsythe 2 Blocks Philip Jurick 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Akron 65 30.0 8-26 15-23 10 39 6 4 13
Oklahoma St. 69 37.5 4-13 23-28 8 39 7 8 16