| One of the most exciting spectacles in sport is the overtime contest. Its a sudden-death, win-or-lose confrontation between two teams that couldn't prove their superiority during the alloted regulation time. In the world of college basketball, the teams from Eastern Michigan have certainly played their share of overtime thrillers. Those classics ranged from back-to-back wins over Ohio Northern and Hillsdale during the 1962-63 season to the heartbreaking loss at Missouri and sigh-of-relief victory over Michigan State in 1987. But one of the most memorable overtime games came against little-known Cleveland State in 1984. The two programs had developed a rough equivalency over the years and when the Vikings invaded Ypsilanti in December, 1984 there was, as usual, little to choose from between the two clubs. In the previous 11 meetings the teams had put on a show almost every time; only once had the winning margin been more than eight points. EMU had managed to walk away with victories seven times in that stretch, so expectations were for a close game and hopes were for a Huron victory. Head Coach Jim Boyce had assembled possibly the most talented team during his reign at EMU, featuring the inside game of Vince Giles and outside shooting of Fred Cofield, who went on to the NBA. Percy Cooper joined Cofield to form a very capable backcourt. Mike McCaskill and Lewis Scott were able but inexperienced and small sophomore forwards. Cleveland State's Kevin Mackey was in the process of quietly building one of the best college basketball programs in the Midwest. The Vikings were only two years away from a Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA tournament and two more NIT berths. The groundwork for that success was found in the '84-'85 squad. The front line of Clinton Smith, Clinton Ransey, and Eugene Miles was solid, if not spectacular. The offense revolved around a quick shooting guard, Vince Richards. CSU took out the Bowen Field House crowd early in the game, jumping out to a 20-11 lead. The Hurons battled back, McCaskill tying the game with a tomahawk slam dunk. With time running out in the half, CSU moved ahead by four. But then Cofield took control. The senior from Ypsilanti canned a jumper and then tied it with a fast-break layup off a steal. |
| While the late Cofield surge provided the Hurons with an emotional lift at the intermission, it was Giles who had kept Eastern in the game with 14 points. But the big CSU frontcourt held Giles, EMU's leading rebounders" to only three boards. Giles scored the first four points of the second half to give the Hurons a 46-42 advantage, but he wouldn't score again until late in regulation. It would be up to everyone else to step up. Cleveland State evened the game at 54 a few minutes later. The two teams then traded buckets six times. The Vikings rallied midway through the second half, taking a seven point lead. And when Richards banged in three consecutive jumpers, the visitors had an 83-78 lead with time running out. The local fans began to desert Bowen. It was a night for many heroes, however, and the Hurons weren't finished. Boyce unveiled a talented but raw freshman named Grant Long, who flashed signs of brilliance to come. Like a playground newcomer eager to prove himself, Long was all over the court. First he nailed a jumper. Then he drew a foul and hit both free throws. Then, he scattered several Viking defenders with a drive to the hole for a layup. Long's flurry ended as quickly as it began but Eastern was back in the game to stay. The Hurons had a chance to win with seven seconds left but McCaskill missed the front end of a one-and-one opportunity. The Vikings got the ball but on the fast-break Smith misfired and the game moved into its first extra session. In the overtime, the Hurons and Vikings again traded baskets until the score was tied at 95, with 3:16 left. Once again, neither team seemed able to take the game and shake a win out of it. The score was still deadlocked when McCaskill had another chance to win it at the line with 19 seconds remaining. To the horror of McCaskill and the home crowd, he missed again. The Vikings again came up with the rebound but again they couldn't set up a workable play, and Richards' 35 foot shot missed as time expired. Shades of the end of regulation! McCaskill ignited the crowd with another jam to begin the second OT. That started a 6-0 Huron run. But when CSU's pressure defense converted consecutive Huron turnovers into Richards' field goals, the game was again tied. The contest was tied one last time, at 103, when Cooper drove the baseline and sank a shot past the surprised Viking defenders. Scott sank two free throws and McCaskill, perhaps relieved not to be standing at the free throw line, sealed the win with an in-your-face jam as Bowen exploded in a frenzy. It was sudden-death, all right. A win or lose now confrontation. In a different, less serious sense, Eastern Michigan and Cleveland State had injected an infectious enthusiasm into one another on the basketball court, and played a memorable game of roundball. The kind, in fact, that goes down among the most exciting overtime "spectacles" in Huron Hardwood History. Return to: Huron Hardwood History Dave's Attic |
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| Vince Giles, Mike McCaskill |
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| December 8, 1984 Ypsilanti, MI Eastern Michigan 109 Cleveland State 105 (2OT) |