KOKOMO, Ind. - The IU Kokomo men's basketball team won a competitive, thrilling, double-overtime contest with the Oakland City Mighty Oaks on Tuesday night, winning by a score of 82-81. With the win, the Cougars rise to 16-5 on the season with a 6-5 mark in conference games.

Chris Chin sank a jump shot a mere ten seconds into the game, before a layup from Dell DeMyers and a Julien Hunter jumper gave the Cougars an early 6-0 lead. From here, Oakland City went on a 13-2 scoring run to jump out to a five point lead of their own.

Near the midpoint of the half, Max Newman drilled a three pointer, followed by a jumper and a pair of free throws from Jacksen Harre to put IUK back in front 15-13.

The Cougars and the Mighty Oaks engaged in a defensive struggle throughout the final moments of a low-scoring first half, with Oakland City taking a mere 26-22 lead into halftime.

Oakland City increased their lead to eight points in the opening moments of the second half, but the Cougars finally found some offensive life. A fireball of a three-pointer by Dell Demyers kicked off a dominant IUK scoring barrage, which saw the Cougars take a 39-31 lead just six minutes into the half.

The Oaks quickly cut the deficit to five, but Max Newman and Chris Chin responded with a layup and a triple to put the Cougars in front by ten. 

The Cougars held a 50-48 lead with seven minutes remaining, before free throws by both teams tied the score at 52. The score was again tied at 56 after even more free throws, before Oakland CIty pulled ahead 61-56 with three minutes remaining.

Hope seemed lost for the Cougars, trailing by five with 14 seconds remaining, but a well-drawn up play for a perfectly executed missed free-throw and offensive rebound led to a three-point shot by Hunter Jackson and a clutch jump shot by Chris Chin to force overtime while tied at 67.

The Oaks scored four unanswered points to start overtime, before Max Newman scored a layup to bring IUK back within two. Oakland City again pulled ahead 75-71, and the Cougars again stormed back to tie the score, forcing double overtime at a score of 75-75.

Similar to the first extra period, the second OT started off with an Oakland City scoring run, putting IUK down 79-75. Five straight points by the Cougars, punctuated by a Julien Hunter layup, put them ahead by one. Oakland City scored two from the line to lead 81-80, but a costly foul allowed Jacksen Harre to sink two clutch free throws and win an 82-81 nail-biter for IU Kokomo.

Chris Chin led the Cougars offensively in the victory with a dominant 24 points, while also grabbing a career-high 11 rebounds for his first career double-double. Julien Hunter scored 13 points, and Max Newman, Hunter Jackson, and Dell Demyers each scored 10 points. Newman also pulled down 18 boards in the win.

Jacksen Harre scored a season-high eight points, including the game-winning free throws in the second OT.

The Cougars will be back in action this Saturday for another home RSC game against the Bearcats of Brescia University.

For the latest news, updates, and information on the IU Kokomo Cougars, fans can visit IUKCougars.com. Fans can also stay up to date on the latest Cougar news by following @IUKAthletics on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.