Northeastern State guard Ricky Branham hit a three with 59.6 seconds left in the second overtime and the RiverHawks added five free throws to spoil a valiant come-from-behind effort by Texas A&M University-Commerce in a 76-68 win on Wednesday night.

After senior Scooby Johnson hit one of two free throws to tie the game at 68, Branham came down and hit the three pointer with four seconds left on the shot clock. Next, a Lions chance to tie it ended in an A&M-Commerce turnover. The RiverHawks managed to score the next five points for the win.

A&M-Commerce (9-14, 4-4 LSC North) Johnson scored 20 of his 27 points in the second half and in the two overtimes to go along with 10 rebounds for his fourth double double of the season. Joining him in double figures was Kevin Widemond and Leonard Bishop, who scored 12 and 11 points, respsectively.

Northeastern State (11-12, 4-4 LSC North) had three players in double figures including Steve Neal with 21 points and 10 rebounds in the win. He was joined by Branham, who added 13 and Joe Martinez, who chipped in 10.

The Lions rallied from a 32-18 deficit at the intermission with a strong second half effort. In the second 20 minutes, A&M-Commerce shot a blistering 63% from the field to tie the game. As the offense raised its intensity, the Lions defense held Northeastern State to 37.5% shooting.

Next, the Lions return home for its next two games, starting with a 4 pm contest on Saturday against East Central at the A&M-Commerce Field House.