Box Score Due West, S.C. – The Limestone Saints (17-7, 9-5) escaped Erskine's upset bid with a 70 to 63 overtime victory tonight in Conference Carolinas men's basketball action at Belk Arena.

After leading by three at intermission, the Flying Fleet (13-10, 6-7) trailed for most of the second half, tying the game in the final minute to force overtime.  Senior Chris Gore (Myrtle Beach, SC, Myrtle Beach High School) made a nice move in the post to tie the game at 55 to 55 with 33 seconds remaining.  On the Saints ensuing possession, Gore played superb defensive, forcing Saints sharpshooter P.J. Foster into a deep fade-away three point shot that failed to draw iron resulting in a shot clock violation.  With just 1.8 seconds remaining, Jake Haslam (Lithia, FL, Tampa Preparatory School) threw a long pass that Gore grabbed, pivoted and shot.  His last second attempt fell just short as the crowd cried for a foul from the officials.  Gore finished with 9 points and a game-high 21 rebounds, including 8 on the offensive end.

In overtime Erskine fell behind by five points with just over a minute remaining.  After misfiring on their next possession, the Fleet were forced to foul and the Saints converted on six of their final eight free throw attempts to extend their lead to the final score of 70 to 63.  It was the largest lead of the game for the Saints.

Sophomore Roderick Perkins (Smyrna, GA, Campbell High School) led all-scorers with a game-high 26 points along with 6 rebounds, two blocks and three steals.  Senior Justin Cofer (Evans, GA, Greenbrier High School) had another excellent game at point guard in place of injured Mike Gabbard, scoring 13 points along with 3 assists.  More importantly, he had a Gabbard-esque 1 turnover in 45 minutes of playing time.  Freshman Brandon Willkerson (Summerville, SC, Summerville High School) came off the bench to spark the Fleet offensively with 13 points along with 7 rebounds.

The Saints had four players finish in double-figures, led by Josh Odem's 23 points and team-high 9 rebounds.

Erskine travels to North Greenville University on Saturday.  Game time is set for 4:00 p.m.