LAKE CHARLES – Jamaya Burr scored a career-high 26 points including eight of McNeese's 12 scores in overtime as the Cowboys beat Incarnate Word 79-76 on Monday night for the team's second consecutive Southland Conference win.
 
"This was a big win for us against a good team," said head coach Dave Simmons. "Everybody came ready to play."
 
The win was the third in four games for McNeese who improved to 5-12 on the season and 3-4 in league play. UIW fell to 9-8 and saw its four-game winning streak halted while falling to 4-2 in the conference.
 
UIW hit all of its shots in the overtime period – 2 field goals and 5 free throws – but was forced into five turnovers by the Cowboys that led to five crucial McNeese points.
 
"We've been stressing defense," said Simmons. "I thought tonight was as good a defense that we've played all year."
 
That defense held UIW to 25-percent shooting in the second half including holding the Cardinals to just one field goal in their first 14 attempts while McNeese opened up a 15-point lead with just over 12 minutes to play.
 
But that didn't hold long as the Cardinals took advantage of a McNeese field goal drought of its own and capped off an 18-2 run after a Kyle Hittle 3 put UIW up 57-56 with 6:31 to play.
 
"We as coaches need to do a better job of finishing things off when we get a good lead," said Simmons. "We bent some tonight but we didn't break."
 
Lance Potier's 3 put the Cowboys back on top at 59-57 with 6:06 to play then the two teams traded blows the rest of the way until the final few seconds when the ball on Burr's dash into the lane with 8 seconds to go was stripped away then Stephen Ugochukwu came up with perhaps the biggest block of his young career to save the game on a fast-break layup attempt by Shawn Johnson with 2 seconds to go in regulation.
 
The overtime period never saw more than a 3-point margin as the Cowboys knocked down 8 of 10 from the free throw line including five makes with under 17 seconds to play to seal the win.
 
Burr hit 7 of 13 from the field and 11 of 14 from the free throw line while dishing out five assists with three steals in playing 43 minutes on the night. James Harvey added 17 points while Craig McFerrin scored 14 and Tevin Jackson had 12 along with a season-high nine boards.
 
Mitchell Badillo led the Cardinals with 21 points followed by 19 from Derail Green, Hittle 13 and Johnson 10.
 
McNeese led 39-34 at the half and built as much as an eight point lead after a couple of Burr free throws with seven second to play. UIW's Green banked in a long three at the buzzer to cut the margin to five at the break.
 
The Cowboys shot 42 percent from the field (25 of 57) for the game and was 7 of 20 from 3-point range for 35 percent while knocking down 24 of 32 from the free throw line.
 
UIW hit 23 of 64 from the field for 35.9 percent, was 10 of 25 for 40 percent from long range, and shot 80 percent (20-25) from the line. The Cardinals held a 42-39 advantage on the Cowboys in rebounds.
 
Next up for the Cowboys will be a two-game trip to face New Orleans on Saturday evening followed by a game at Southeastern Louisiana next Monday night.