NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana men's basketball avoided a second consecutive last-second home defeat and regained a share of first place in the Red River Athletic Conference.
        The Gold Rush, ranked 21st in the NAIA, defeated last-place Louisiana Christian 78-71 in overtime Saturday and climbed into a three-way tie for first in the RRAC. XULA shares first with LSU-Shreveport, a 92-73 loser at home to Texas College, and LSU-Alexandria, which won 83-69 at North American after rallying from 18 down Thursday to beat XULA.
        It's crowded at the top of the RRAC. XULA, LSUS and LSUA are 6-2, followed by Texas College at 7-3 and North American at 5-3. XULA will visit North American Monday and LSUS Thursday.
        Jathen Ross' 19 points and five 3-pointers, both season highs, led XULA (10-3). Teammate TJ Jones scored eight of his 18 points in overtime.
        Louisiana Christian (3-11, 1-7) had a chance to win at the end of regulation, but Jude Akabueze made 1-of-2 free throws with seven-tenths of a second remaining to send the teams into overtime tied at 63.
        With 2:26 remaining, Jeremy Lindsey started an 8-0 run with a 3-pointer that put the Gold Rush ahead to stay at 71-70. When Jones made two free throws with 11 seconds remaining to close the scoring, XULA had its largest lead of the game.
        Lindsey, Cory Wells and Lance Williams scored eight points apiece, and J'Quan Ewing grabbed nine rebounds. Wells' seven assists were game and career highs.
        Akabueze, the RRAC leader in field-goal percentage, made 11-of-13 from the floor and scored a game-high 24 points. He also grabbed nine rebounds. Teammate Gary Smith — who played two seasons (2020-22) for the Gold Rush — made five 3s and scored 17 points.
        The Wildcats shot 57 percent from the floor the first 32 minutes, but only 33 percent thereafter. XULA made a season-high 12 3-pointers — three by Jones and two apiece by Lindsey and Williams.
        XULA led 32-30 at halftime, and neither team led by more than five points in the second half. Louisiana Christian lost its sixth straight and for the 10th time in its last 11 games.
        XULA will play North American at 4 p.m. Monday in the Houston suburb of Stafford, Texas. The Gold Rush will play three RRAC road games in six days, capped by a Saturday visit to Texas A&M-Texarkana. XULA's next home game will be Jan. 25.

Red River Athletic Conference scores of Jan. 13, 2024 (home teams in bold)
XULA 78, Louisiana Christian 71, OT
LSU-Alexandria 83, North American 69
Texas College 92, LSU-Shreveport 73
Texas A&M-Texarkana 84, Jarvis Christian 71
Paul Quinn 81, Huston-Tillotson 79
Southwest (N.M.) 88, Our Lady of the Lake 84

Red River Athletic Conference standings through Jan. 13, 2024
6-2 XULA
6-2 LSU-Shreveport
6-2 LSU-Alexandria
7-3 Texas College
5-3 North American
5-5 Jarvis Christian
4-5 Our Lady of the Lake
4-5 Southwest (N.M.)
3-5 Texas A&M-Texarkana
3-6 Paul Quinn
2-7 Huston-Tillotson
1-7 Louisiana Christian