Sam Houston (22-7 14-2 Southland) overcame a 10-point deficit to go up 45-39 at halftime, but the Bobcats fought back to force overtime as John Rybak scored on a free throw with one second left to tie the contest 87-87 at the end of regulation.

Texas State (15-15 9-7 Southland) never trailed in the overtime, going up by six points 96-90 with 54 seconds remaining on free throws by Ryan White. The Bobcats were led by Rybak who scored 25 points.

Ashton Mitchell (16 points) and Corey Allmond (12) also scored in double figures for Sam Houston. The Kats shot 55 percent in the first half (17-of-31) and 42 percent in the second (11-of-26) but were just 2-of-8 in the extra five minutes.

Allmond almost saved the day in regulation as he drilled a 3-point shot with 13 seconds left in regulation to put SHSU up 87-86. Texas State's Rybak was able to draw a foul with under a second left and knocked in a free throw to force overtime. The Bobcats continued to get to the line, hitting 8-of-10 free-throw attempts in the extra period to hand the Bearkats a 101-97 loss Saturday.

"We played poor defensively," Bearkats head coach Bob Marlin said. "We didn't guard in the second half or overtime. We really didn't defend well in the first half. We made some shots, but we just didn't defend.

"Clavell had a great game. Josten had a great game. Corey hit a big 3 and I thought that was going to win it for us."

Allmond nailed another trey to cut the lead to three, but the Kats had to start fouling. Clavell knocked in a pair of free throw to trim the advantage to 99-97 with four seconds left.

White answered with two more shots at the charity strip to seal it.

"We didn't do what we needed to do defensively," Marlin said. "We lived on the edge and that got us in trouble."

Rybak led the Bobcats with 25 points.

Ashton Mitchell (16 points) and Allmond (12) also scored in double figures for Sam Houston. The Kats shot 55 percent in the first half (17 of 31) and 42 percent in the second (11 of 26) but were just 2 of 8 in the extra five minutes.

Sam Houston, which won the league's regular-season championship, now heads to the Southland Conference tournament at the Merrell Center in Katy on Wednesday. The Bearkats will face Nicholls at 6 p.m.

The winner of the Southland tournament earns the league's automatic berth in the 2010 NCAA Big Dance. Sam Houston's men's team won the 2003 tournament title and advanced to play Florida in Tampa in the NCAA first round.

Fans may purchase your Southland Conference session tickets online at SHSU Ticket Office or by calling 936-294-1729. The supply of Southland  single session tickets are a limited so fans are urged to purchase their tickets as soon as possible.

First round and semifinal men's and women's session tickets are $18 each and feature two games. Championship day tickets are $15.

Go to Southland Tournament Central for more information or by call the SHSU Athletic Ticket office at  936 294-1729. The Sam Houston athletic ticket office is located in the Ron Mafrige Field House at Bowers Stadium. Ticket office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

By purchasing tournament tickets through the SHSU Ticket Office, fans will assured of seats in the SHSU section of the Merrell Center. Tickets will be allocated based on a priority system and availability.

The women's first round games are March 9 and the men's first round the next day. Semifinal games are Thursday. The women's championship game is Friday, March 12. The men's championship game will be Saturday, March 13, and will be televised nationally on ESPN2.