THE NATIONAL Invitational Tournament (NIT) has delivered some thrilling encounters over the past couple of weeks, and that trend continued, as the Ty Brewer-led UAB Blazers held on to claim an overtime win against the Utah Valley Wolverines on Wednesday morning.

The match took place at Orleans Arena, and fans were treated to a mesmerising contest, with both sides throwing haymakers on the offensive end throughout the entire match. With a spot in the championship game on the line, neither team was willing to back down.

Neither club could take a true scoreboard advantage in either half of regulation, seemingly producing an answer consistently for any run the opposition made. In extra time, the Blazers jumped out to an early lead, but the Wolverines got going in the dying minutes of OT. However, UAB stayed slightly ahead, and when Utah Valley’s full court heave at the buzzer missed, the Blazers had set up a deciding encounter against North Texas.

UAB would not have been able to advance to the final stage if not for the heroics of Brewer, who had himself a night out on both ends on the court.

Utah Valley Wolverines (86) def. by UAB Blazers (88)

Ty Brewer – 30 points, 12 rebounds, five steals

Brewer’s numbers reflect the dominance he delivered in a must-win match for the Blazers, driving his side to victory with a crucial showing.

It was a career-night for the forward, who has been a valuable servant for UAB during his time at the school.

30 points was the most he has ever recorded in a single match, saving his best performance for the biggest stage. It was also a game-high total, taking over on the offensive end and picking holes in the opposition’s defensive structures.

He was driven to 30 points by a terrific level of efficiency, nailing 13 shots on just 17 attempts, fighting through some tough guarding to find the bottom of the net. Remarkably, he reached his points total with no trips to the free throw line. From behind the arc, Brewer shot 80 per cent (four makes on five shots) and scoring at all three levels.

In a match that had plenty of contributors on the rebounding front, Brewer was the best of the bunch from the Blazers. A team-high 12 boards was made up of four on the offensive end, and eight on the defensive end.

Defensively, he pestered the Wolverines and ripped away five steals with a combination of intercepting passes and poking the ball free from the opposition ball handler, capping off a match-winning performance.