YORK - It was a back-and-forth battle all night between the two teams in the Freeman Center with the Midland University Warriors getting the final points to survive with a 71-67 win. York fought to the final whistle but some costly turnovers sealed the fate for the Panthers.

The final two minutes of play saw the teams trading baskets in a one-possession contest. The largest lead over the span came when fifth-year senior Laurence Merritt made his fifth three-point field goal of the night with 1:32 left in the game. Erik Talton answered back and got the Panthers within one point 66-67 with just over a minute to play. Those two baskets ended up being the final field goals made by either team the rest of the night as it was a free throw shooting contest over the final minute of play. After Midland missed both of their free throws with 11.8 seconds remaining the Panthers were in prime position for the last shot. Isaiah King found himself in prime position off of the inbounds pass and free reign toward the top of the key. His pull-up jumper went in, however, his travel negated the basket and the Panthers were forced to foul. 

After the Warriors made both of their free throws the Panthers were still within one possession. A strategic foul on Talton prevented him from tying the game on a last-second three and he was sent to the charity stripe. After making the front-end attempt he was forced to miss the next to try to get an offensive rebound and putback. The Warriors boxed out and got the rebound which effectively ended the game.

Key Statistics
York was dominant from inside the paint as they scored 48 points. The Warriors were -30 at just 18 points from inside. But the Warriors shot 31 times from beyond the arc and converted on 10 of those for a +7 advantage. York shot just 60% from the free-throw line, while Midland was 86% from the same spot.

By The Numbers
Three of York's starters scored in double figures led by Erik Talton with 25. Brent Clark scored 12 points, while Webster Simeus picked up his first double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds. York owned a better shooting percentage overall at 55%, but just 21% from beyond the arc.

Panthers Leaders

Points: Erik Talton (25)

Rebounds: Webster Simeus (10)

Assists: Isaiah King (4)

Steals: Talton, Simeus (2)

York travels down to Texas for the SAGU Classic this coming weekend. They face Wiley on Friday at 5:00 p.m., followed by Dallas Christian College on Saturday at 12:00 p.m.