January 9, 2006 – ATLANTA – Poor free-throw shooting by the Maroon Tigers led to the second straight loss at home, as Morehouse dropped a close one to Paine College, 80-76 in overtime.

The loss overshadowed a gutsy performance by the Maroon Tigers who trailed most of the game to the SIAC’s number one team, but fought back against a much taller squad.

A clutch three-pointer by guard Will Belton with six seconds left in regulation tied the score at 71 and sent the game into overtime.

The Maroon Tigers shot a paltry 20-of-37 from the free-throw. The 54 percent accuracy was the team’s worst free-throw shooting of the season.

Guard Will Belton led the Morehouse scoring with 20 points on 7-of-16 shooting from the field. His 5-of-5 shooting from the free-throw line was the team’s only bright spot from the charity stripe. The 6-1” shooter from Fairburn, Ga. is the SIAC’s leading free-throw shooter for the second year in a row.

Belton’s 20 points give him an 18.7 points-per-game average and push him ahead of teammate Brandon Childs for the team scoring lead. The two have gone back and forth this season.

Though barely outdone in the scoring column, Childs had a monster game overall. The team co-captain from Conyers, Ga. threw in 17 points, pulled down 10 rebounds, handed out five assists and collected a game-high six steals.

Newcomer Peter Price recorded his second double-double of the year, scoring 11 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Center James Beasley had his second best scoring day of the season pouring in 13 points.

Brian Harper paced the Paine Lions with 26 points. His 19 points in the first half helped stake his team to a 42-34 halftime lead. Jason Newmans (14 pts) and Justin Durham (13 pts.) also scored in double digits for the visitors. Paine improved to 7-2 (6-0 SIAC).

Morehouse dropped to 6-6 (3-4 SIAC) and will face the (2-9) Miles Golden Bears in Birmingham on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. (CST).