KATY, Texas – The popular slogan for conference tournaments these days has been "survive and advance."
 
That's exactly what the 5^th-seeded McNeese State Cowboys did on Wednesday evening but it wasn't until Austin Lewis's sixth blocked shot of the game with less than two seconds to play in overtime to secure a 62-60 win over No. 8 Southeastern Louisiana to have the Cowboys advance to Thursday's 5 o'clock second round game against No. 4 Northwestern State.
 
The win was the fifth straight for the Cowboys who improve their record to 15-15 overall.
 
Lewis, who finished with seven points, 10 rebounds and six blocks, had a monstrous dunk on a putback with 2:31 to play in the overtime period to cut the Lions' lead to 58-57.
 
Keelan Garrett, who led the Cowboys (15-15) with 14 points, took over after SLU's Jimmie Duplessis hit a 3-pointer with 1:56 to play to give the Lions a 60-57 lead. Garrett followed with his fourth trey of the night to tie the game, then after Kevin Hardy, the league's No. 1 stealer, snatched away his second steal of the game, the found an open Garrett on the opposite end of the court for an open layup to give the Pokes a 62-60 lead.
 
"First off, my hat's off to Southeastern," said head coach Dave Simmons. "They came in playing really well and had to make some adjustments due to injuries. We're very fortunate to get the win. Our seniors aren't ready to go home."
 
One of those seniors missed his second overtime period of the season when Desharick Guidry fouled out with 6:27 to play in regulation and the Cowboys trailing 53-47.
 
That opened the door for someone else to step up for the Cowboys other than Hardy. And just like in an overtime win over Nicholls 12 days ago, an unlikely source had to step up. This time, it was by committee with Hardy, Garrett, Lewis, and Shaun Johnson.
 
Trailing 44-35 with 11:45 to play, Johnson caught fire and knocked down three straight 3-pointers to put the Cowboys on a 12-4 run and cut the margin to 1 point at 48-47 with 7:28 to play.
 
"He (Johnson) didn't get a lot of time in the first half but he came out in the second and hit some big 3s for us," said Simmons. "Austin really took over after Desharick fouled out. And Kevin is Kevin. What else can you say about Kevin Hardy.
 
"We're happy to win the basketball game. I always tell them it's tough to beat a team three times (McNeese beat the Lions 73-60 and 74-69 during the season)."
 
SLU rode the streak shooting of Cedric Jenkins in the first half after he scored 19 of the team's 27 points to see the teams tied at 27-27 at the break, but he cooled in the second half as fatigue set in. He still finished with a game-high 27 points but his lack of second half production opened the door for Daniel Grieves to matched Johnson's three-point makes with a couple of his own and one that snapped the Cowboys' run and gave the Lions a 4-point lead at 51-47 with 6:55 to play.
 
Johnson, who finished with 11 points, hit 2 of 3 free throws to cut the gap to 53-49 and after a turnover by SLU on a shot clock violation, Hardy kissed one off the glass to make it a 2-point game with 5:36 to play.
 
The Lions got it back to four points following a DeVonte Upson layup but a layup by Hardy then a basket from Lance Potier on a second chance opportunity, tied the game at 55-55 with 2:30 to play.
 
Neither team could score any points the final 2:30 but Johnson had a 3-point chance at the buzzer that was blocked by Dylon Maggio to send the game to overtime.
 
SLU got on the board a minute and a half into the extra period when Jenkins hit one of two free throws the followed with a lauyup to make it 58-55. The Cowboys outscored SLU 7-2 the rest of the way to get the win.
 
"We made some plays late and at this time of the season, that's what you have to have," said Simmons. "You have to have guys make some big plays and Shaun made some big plays. Austin made some big plays. He was a man on the rebounds down low."
 
The Cowboys hit just 36.5 percent of their shots from the field (23 of 63) but made 3 of 7 in the overtime period while SLU hit just 2 of 7. The Lions shot 38.6 percent (22 of 57) but hit 10 of 22 for 45.5 percent in the second half.
 
SLU dominated the boards in the first half by a 22-14 margin including 10 of those on the offensive end but Lewis took charge in the second half where the Cowboys had the upper hand despite being outrebounded by a 44-37 margin for the game.
 
McNeese turned the ball over just four times in the game as well, a season low and one game after turning it over just five times in a win over Central Arkansas.
 
Guidry finished the game with 11 points and five rebounds and Hardy added 11 points with four assists.
 
McNeese and Northwestern State will meet for just the second time ever in the conference tournament on Thursday. The only other time came in the 2001 championship game when the Demons upset the top-seeded Cowboys 72-71 on a last second layup.