Box Score Isaac Brooks (30) and Kalu Abosi showed perfect timing Saturday. The pair recorded career high point games just when Hamline's men's basketball team needed them in a 79-74 overtime win over Concordia at Memorial Auditorium. The Pipers registered their 13th overall win of the season -- the most by a HU team in five seasons. Even more importantly, HU, picked for last in the coaches' preseason poll, leapfrogged past the Cobbers into fifth place in the MIAC with a 10-8 record. Concordia holds down sixth place-- the final playoff spot -- with a 9-8 mark. 

Brooks, a sophomore, scored 21 points -- 15 in the second half alone --  had three rebounds and a pair of steals. Abosi, a junior transfer, threw in 15 points. They had a lot of company at the end as HU rallied from a four-point deficit in the final minute of play to gain the rugged road win. 

HU trailed 65-61 when Abosi was fouled with 49 seconds left in the second half. the junior from St. Paul made one of the two shots from the line to cut the lead to 3. CC came down, missed a three-pointer. Dylan See-Rockers grabbed the rebound was promptly fouled. See-Rockers made both shots and it was now a 65-64 game. HU then immediately fouled and sent Concordia to the FT line where they only made one of two tries, which gave Zach Smith the opening he needed for a layup that tied the game at 66, sending it into overtime.

Hamline took immediate charge of the extra session, scoring the first five points. TC Robinson, who scored three points in regulation, netted six in the five-minute period.

The early work of Abosi and Brooks kept HU close enough to have time for the late theatrics. Brooks had seven points in the first half , which ended with Hamline trailing 31-28. Brooks was a  major force at the start of the second half as Hamline zoomed to a six-point lead only to see CC storm back with an 8-0 run to regain a slight edge. The Pipers held a 25-12 edge in points off turnovers and a 34-18 advantage for points in the paint.  Zach Smith, who played all 45 minutes, had 10 points and is now 29 shy of becoming the 16th player in school history to record 1,000 points. 

Hamline has two games in the final week as they bid to make the playoffs for the first time since the 2010-11 season. First up: a rematch of an OT loss when they visit St. John's on Wednesday, February 15 (7 p.m.). The Johnnies are tied for third with Carleton at 11-6 in MIAC play. The regular season finale is Saturday, February 18 against Macalester at Hutton Arena at 3 p.m.