The Mansfield Mountaineers men’s basketball team faced a tough challenge on Monday night, as they competed in a road clash with Dominican University of New York in non-conference action. Despite a narrow escape, the Chargers emerged victorious with an overtime battle that saw the Mounties score 92-88.

The Ali brothers were the standout players of the game, scoring a combined 48 points and grabbing 13 rebounds each. Saraj Ali set his career high with 26 points and another double-double, while Idris Ali scored 22 points and grabbed five rebounds. Both brothers are graduates of Loyalsock High School.

Manir Waller had an impressive performance, picking up his first double-double of the season with 16 points and 13 rebounds on the night. Dominican got off to an early lead with a dominant offensive output on their home court, setting an early momentum boost for themselves. However, Mansfield quickly rallied back and took a commanding lead of their own after eight minutes with a dominant offensive output.

As halftime approached, Dominican held a narrow advantage over Mansfield, but the Mounties owned the momentum after their dominance in the paint led to 28 points by halftime. The Ali brothers combined to score 19 of those first half points for Mansfield.

The second half was full of hard-fought battles between the two teams, with six lead changes in just five minutes before Dominican pulled ahead slightly at 52-48 with ten minutes remaining on the clock. Mansfield kept pushing forward as they trailed by just one possession in a thrilling final minute showdown that ultimately ended in overtime for both teams.