GAMBIER, Ohio -- Playing for the final time this calendar year, the Kenyon College men's basketball team (4-8, 2-1 NCAC) closed out 2023 with a thrilling comeback victory over the Chatham University Cougars (7-5, 5-2 PAC). The Owls overcame a 14-point halftime deficit and endured a physical overtime period to clinch the 82-79 win on their home court.

Despite a final score that favored the Owls, Chatham controlled the game early. The Cougars came out of the gates hot and knocked down the game's first shot, a three-pointer that sparked a scorching start. The visitors made their first five shots and built a nine-point lead in the early going after outscoring the Owls 11-2 over the game's first three minutes. 

Kenyon's deficit swelled to double digits at 19-9, but Gefen Bar-Cohen converted an and-one ahead of an Anthony Testa triple that got the Owls back on track. However, the Cougars countered the 6-0 run with six straight of their own to reclaim the 10-point edge. 

The Owls added another chapter to the back-and-forth saga as Kenyon shot 6-6 with two triples over the next four minutes and rattled off a 15-7 stretch that cut their disadvantage to a single basket at 32-30. However, the script flipped again when Chatham closed the half on an 18-6 run to take a 50-36 halftime lead. Kenyon missed five field goals and turned the ball over four times over the six-minute spurt, and a last-second buzzer-beating layup gave the visitors their largest lead of the game. 

Fortunately for the home team, the second half was a different story. Dylan Fuerst made the first two field goals and scored five of his 10 points as the Owls opened the half by scoring eight straight. Chatham poured in four points to get the lead back to 10, but the tap was shut off as the visitors endured a scoring drought of over seven minutes. After shooting 62 percent in the first half, Chatham was just 2-18 (11 percent) to start the second frame. Peter Haas and Justin Gagnon had a major impact off the bench, and the duo combined for nine points over a 13-0 Kenyon run that gave the Owls their first lead. 

Kenyon was in good shape after four points apiece from Murathan Kocaman and Bar-Cohen had the home team up 65-60 with under four minutes to play, and Fuerst gave the Owls a two-point, 67-65 lead with under two minutes on the clock. However, an and-one by the Cougars with 50 seconds left threatened to undo the comeback effort. Down by one, Bar-Cohen drove inside and drew a foul with 27 seconds left. He made the first freebie but missed the second as Chatham had a chance to take the final shot, but Kenyon's defense held firm to force overtime.

A second-chance basket put Chatham ahead 70-68 in extra time, but the teams traded points as the Cougars maintained a two-point edge with under three minutes to play. The tide turned when Bar-Cohen drew a foul on Chatham's Geoffrey Helm, and the Cougars player gave away two extra chances at the charity stripe after receiving a technical foul for slamming the ball down in frustration. Connor Moss stepped up and knocked down the two free throws before Bar-Cohen split a pair, but the forward stole the ball and went coast-to-coast to put the Owls up 77-74 after a 5-0 run.

The junior capped off his game-high 24-point scoring effort with a basket that gave Kenyon a five-point cushion with 31 seconds on the clock, but Chatham was not done fighting. After a layup, the Cougars forced a turnover with their inbound defense and quickly cut the lead back to one. Kenyon got the ball into Moss's hands after a timeout, and the junior swished home the pair to reinstate the three-point edge. Fuerst split a pair of freebies that gave Chatham a last-second look at a game-tying shot, but Bar-Cohen got in the way of Simon Boyer, who led Chatham with 22 points, to force a miss and clinch the victory.

Kenyon secured its third straight win with more strong defense in overtime and some clutch free-throw shooting. Chatham took seven more shots in the overtime period (12-5) but only made one more (4-3), and the Owls went 8-10 at the charity stripe. Overall, Kenyon's defensive discipline and offensive pressure helped the Owls earn 28 chances at the line to Chatham's 12, where Kenyon made three times the free throws (18-6).

Moss led the overtime scoring effort with six of his career-high 17 points, and he was 4-4 at the line in OT. He also tied a season-high with five boards. Bar-Cohen notched five points in the extra frame, finishing with a season-highs of 24 points and three blocks and team-highs of 10 rebounds and three assists. 

Kocaman (13) and Fuerst (10) each scored in double figures for the third straight game. Gagnon played the best game of his young collegiate career as the first-year finished with season-highs of six points, two rebounds, and two steals. He also posted a game-high plus-16 in just over nine minutes of action. 

After defending Tomsich Arena with wins against their final two non-conference opponents, the Owls will host a pair of North Coast Athletic Conference foes in the first week of the new year. Kenyon welcomes The College of Wooster on Wednesday, January 3, and Wittenberg University on Saturday, January 6. The games are set to tip off at 7 and 2 p.m., respectively.