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SAN ANGELO – Ridge McKeither did everything he could to put the Rams in position to win with a career-best 32 points and 16 rebounds, but it was Steve Moore who sealed the deal with a late free throw to lift Angelo State to a 82-81 overtime win over No. 23 Midwestern State at the Junell Center Wednesday night.

McKeither went 11-of-17 from the field and pulled down eight rebounds on both the offensive and defensive glass to record his ninth double-double of the season, but with the score tied at 81-81 with 1.4 seconds to play Moore's go-ahead free throw and intentional miss provided the difference in the teams' Lone Star Conference South Division opener. Angelo State (5-8, 1-0 LSC South) edged closer to .500 with its fifth win in the last seven games after starting the season with six consecutive losses. Midwestern State (12-3, 0-1 LSC South) fell for just the third time this season and for the second-consecutive game.

Moore's late free throw seemed like a fitting end to a game that saw the Rams score 36 points from the charity stripe, a mark that tied for the second-most in a single game in ASU history. Angelo State shot just 69.2 percent from the foul line, but made enough of the 52 attempts to get by. Moore and McKeither combined to score all of ASU's 14 points in the extra period, and pushed the team's largest lead of the game to eight in overtime. Midwestern State got a three-pointer from Adrian Van Buren and five points from Chris Hagan, including the game-tying three-pointer with 11 seconds to play, in the final two minutes to even the tally.

Moore pushed the ball the length of the court on the ensuing possession, missed a contested lay-up and was then fouled after getting his own rebound. After a lengthy review of the time left on the clock, Moore went to the line with 1.4 ticks remaining, dribbled three times, bent his knees and nailed the first shot. Moore then missed the second shot and a full court three-point try was off the mark.

For awhile it looked like a single-season-record-setting fifth overtime wouldn't even be an option for ASU. The Rams played without leading scorer LeMarshall Corbett who was suspended Wednesday for a violation of team rules. Midwestern State scored the first four points of the game and led by as many as 11 in the first half before settling for a seven-point advantage at the break (41-34).

The Mustangs pushed the lead to double digits again nearly five and a half minutes into the second half and led 56-46 before a 13-2 run by the Rams, capped by a three-pointer from Richard Thomas, gave ASU its first lead of the game (59-58) with 9:19 to play. Angelo State turned the momentum with its second lead of the game following a lay-up by McKeither with 3:58 to play and led until MSU's Michael Lloyd hit a game-tying three with seven seconds left. Trey Mays missed a leaning jumper as time expired to send the game to overtime.

Moore added seven points in overtime to his ASU career-high 17 total points. Richard Thomas reached the 20-point plateau for the second straight game with 21 points and recorded a double-double with 10 rebounds. Mays scored six points for ASU before fouling out in overtime and Aseante Roberts chipped in four.

Hagan tied for the game high with 32 points in the Mustangs' loss. He was joined in double figures by Michael Loyd (13) and David Terrell (10).

Angelo State will travel to Stephenville, Texas, Saturday for another LSC South Division contest against Tarleton State. The women's game will tip off at 5 p.m. with the men's game to follow.

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