DANBURY, Conn. - Senior guard Jahlyl Morgan (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) had 10 points, nine rebounds, and three steals, including the go-ahead jumper in overtime, to lead the Western Connecticut State University Wolves to a 60-59 win over the visiting Eastern Connecticut State University Warriors in the semifinal round of the Little East Conference (LEC) Men's Basketball Championship Tournament this evening at Feldman Arena.  WestConn improves to 20-6 with its third victory in a row and will host the Keene State College Owls in the LEC Championship Finals on Sunday with the winner of that game earning an automatic bid to the 2025-26 NCAA Division III Championship Tournament.  The Warriors see their season end at 17-10.

With the game knotted at 54-all after two 20-minute halves, WestConn senior guard Tayejon Lynch (Cambria Heights, N.Y.) opened the overtime with a layup that was quickly answered with two free throws by Eastern Connecticut's Julian Santiago.  Morgan followed with the jumper and classmate Nick Boyce (Jamaica, N.Y.) made two free throws to give the Wolves a 58-54 lead with 1:45 on the clock.  WestConn took a 60-56 lead on two more from the foul line by junior guard Elijah Jean-Guillaume (New Haven, Conn.) with five seconds left but Santiago made it seven points in the overtime with a quick trey for the visitors with one tick left.  Lynch missed a pair from the charity stripe but the Warriors were only able to get off desperation heave before the horn sounded.

In the first half, WestConn had jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the opening 2:42 including four points by Boyce.  Eastern Connecticut fought back and took a 15-14 lead midway through the first stanza on a jumper by Dominick Dao.  Dao added a three-pointer to give the Warriors their biggest lead of the first frame at 27-20 with 4:36 on the clock.  The Wolves closed the half with an 8-2 run, including two buckets by sophomore center Marcel Henry (Yonkers, N.Y.), and trailed, 29-28, at the break. 

WestConn came out strong in the second half and led, 38-32, at the 15:40 mark after a trey by Lynch.  Jean-Guillaume and Sanchez traded three-pointers moments later and the game stayed close over a long stretch until Lynch made a pair of free throws to give the home team a 48-43 with 6:35 left in regulation.  The visitors came back again and took a 50-49 lead on a long ball by Pedro Perry at the 3:34 mark and led, 52-50, after a Perry jumper from the wing.  Boyce tied the game at 52-52 with a layup from Lynch and blocked an Eastern Connecticut shot on the ensuing possession.  Lynch and Dao made steals in the final minute, as Boyce's bucket at the 2:01 mark were the last points of the second half.

Boyce and Jean-Guillaume paced WestConn in scoring with 12 points apiece, while Lynch notched nine points, eight rebounds, five assists, and two blocks, and Henry finished with eight points and eight boards.  Santiago came off the Eastern Connecticut bench to score a game-high 20 points, nine rebounds, and four assists.  Dao finished with 12 points and five rebounds and Drew Soltis pulled down 10 rebounds and blocked three shots.  WestConn outrebounded Eastern Connecticut, 50-41.