A back and forth overtime affair eventually went the way of the Storm yesterday, as the Simpson Men’s basketball team took down first place Nebraska Wesleyan in extra time 102-97. The Storm women fell to the Prairie Wolves 85-84 in a heartbreaker.

In the men’s game, multiple lead changes defined the first half, before Nebraska Wesleyan used a late run to pull away and get a 7 point lead going into the break. A quick run to start the second half got the Storm back into it, and the teams began to exchange the lead back and forth again. Down three with less than a minute to go, Taylor Filbert hit a three pointer to tie it, and the teams went into overtime. A clutch three-point shot in the extra period from Kyle Wagner, and tough defense gave the Storm the win. Conor Riordan had a carry-type game, scoring 32 points with 6 rebounds and 6 assists, with just 1 turnover.

The Storm women also had a close contest go down to the wire, as they trailed for most of the contest before taking an 82-80 lead late on Noreen Morrow layup. A steal from the Prairie Wolves and a converted layup gave them a 1 point lead with just seconds remaining, and a missed shot at the buzzer from Janey Botkins gave Nebraska Wesleyan the win. Botkins and Morrow each scored 18 to lead the Storm.

Both men’s and women’s squads will next play on Wednesday at Luther.