SARNIA – Lived up to his moniker on Friday night.

Fifth year forward Samuel Babatunde Sowunmi (Lagos, Nigeria), aka Big Sow, had his biggest game in a Lions uniform on Friday night against the Mohawk Mountaineers inside the Cestar Group Athletics & Fitness Complex. Sowunmi finished the night with 20 points and 23 rebounds as the Lions knocked off the nationally ranked Mountaineers in overtime, 91-84.

The win brought an end to the three-game skid for the Lions, improving their record to 6-7 on the year. With the win, the Lions were also able to exact some revenge on the Mountaineers after a 107-101 loss back on December 1^st in Hamilton.

Much like the Women’s Team did earlier in the night, the Lions came out of the gates strong. Sparked by guard JK Thomas (Marion, Indiana), the Lions opened the game on a 7-0 run to take control early. Thomas had five points in the opening two minutes of the game, while the Lions held the Mountaineers without a point for over three minutes.

Mohawk would answer back with an 8-0 run of their own, but the Lions would regain their rhythm before the frame was complete. Sowunmi got a layup to go in the closing seconds to cap off an 8-1 run to give the Lions a six-point lead after the first, 15-9.

The Lions would continue their run to start the second quarter, scoring the first five points of the frame to stretch their lead to 11. Unlike the Women’s Game, where the Lions were in control from start to finish, the Men’s Game was a back-and-forth affair until the final whistle. Mohawk would cut the deficit down to five before the half, but the Lions held a 38-33 lead after 20 minutes.

In the third quarter, Mohawk outscored the Lions by a 25-16 margin to flip the script and take a four-point lead of their own into the fourth quarter.

Down the stretch in the fourth quarter, the Lions found themselves ahead by three with 2:30 to play. Guards Jerry Wilson (Detroit, Michigan) and Kaleb Deans (Brampton, Ont.) both hit one-of-two free throws at the line, keeping the Mountaineers in the game. After Deans made it a two-point game with two seconds to go, the Mountaineers threw a full court inbounds pass that found its way to Harpreet Gill in the paint, who then proceeded to get a layup to drop before the buzzer to force overtime.

In the extra frame, the Lions scored the first six points to take control of the situation and put some separation between themselves and the Mountaineers. Thomas had seven points in overtime, and he helped push the Lions past the 14^th-ranked Mountaineers, 91-84.

Thomas led all scorers with 28 points on the night to go along with nine rebounds and two assists. Deans added 11 points off the bench, while Wilson added 15 points in the win.

The star of the night was Sowunmi, who put together a 20-point, 23-rebound double-double to go along with three blocks. He shot 8-of-12 from the field, and he went 4-for-5 from the free throw line. Eleven of his rebounds were on the offensive end of the floor, helping to generate second-chance opportunities for the Lions.

Now, the Lions will look to make it back-to-back wins when they head out on the road to take on the Humber Hawks on Saturday, January 27^th. Tip off is set for 3:00 p.m. in Etobicoke.