Auburn had the advantage of a late 5-second violation in regulation to beat Tulsa 92-86 overtime on the night of Sunday to win its first NIT championship. Kevin Overton had 26 and Tahaad Pettiford scored 24, which helped Auburn.
Tulsa had a 76-71 lead with 1:05 left in Regulation with the help of Ade Popoola who sank a 3-pointer. Pettiford scored a 3-pointer with only 44 seconds remaining and Elyjah Freeman made the second of two free throws followed with two foul shots by Tulsa’s Tyler Behrend for a small lead 78-75. The Golden Hurricane couldn’t inbound the ball following Freeman’s make and Overton Buried a baseline 3-pointer with eight seconds left to force OT.
Overton scored his fifth 3 to help Auburn up 89-84 and the Tigers led over the final 3:31 of the extra period.7 of 13 and 7 of 8 free throws were hit by Overton. Pettiford had four 3-pointers and 8 assists. Keyshawn Hall had 11 points and 12 rebounds. Sebastian Williams- Adams helped add 13 points off the bench and Filip Jovic Scored 12.Tylen Riley scored 20, Popoola added 13 Tulsa, and David Green had 25 points. Which finished with the second most wins in program history.
