UNCA’s Sean Smith scored a career-high 17 points against VMI last Saturday afternoon. Photo courtesy of UNCA

LEXINGTON, Va. — Kenny George only played for six seconds, but it was enough to put UNC Asheville into first place in the Big South Conference all by itself last Saturday afternoon.

 George’s layup with 12 seconds left in overtime gave the Bulldogs the lead for good as UNCA rallied past VMI 90-87 before a near-capacity crowd at Cameron Hall.

The win elevated the Bulldogs to 3-0 in league play and 14-4 overall. VMI, trying to go 3-0 in league play for the first time in 30 years, fell to 10-7 overall and 2-1 in BSC action.

UNCA’s K.J. Garland sent the game to overtime with a 25-footer with 0.4 seconds left in regulation to knot the game at 80-80.

In overtime, Reggie Williams hit a jumper at the 37-second mark to push the Keydets in front 87-86.

Undaunted, UNCA came down and had the ball knocked out of bounds with 12.9 seconds left. At that point, Bulldogs head coach Eddie Biedenbach decided to put George, the 7-7 center, in the game for the first time.

After a VMI timeout, Garland sent a perfect pass to George, who caught the ball and laid it in for an 88-87 UNCA lead.

The Keydets quickly came down as Williams drove the paint but the senior guard lost the ball out of bounds. The ball was awarded to the Bulldogs and George came out of the game. Bryan Smithson took the in-bounds pass and was fouled. He sank both free throws for a 90-87 Bulldogs lead.

VMI had one more chance to tie but Williams’ three-pointer just rimmed out to give the Bulldogs the dramatic victory.

“I’m so proud of our guys today,” Biedenbach said afterward. “We battled and fought hard against a great VMI team and found a way to win.

“We didn’t play Kenny today because I thought he needed a rest, and we need him for the whole season,” Biedenbach added. “But I’m glad we used him for those six seconds; it worked out well.”

Sean Smith and Vincent James led the Bulldogs with 17 points. Smithson finished with 14 points, while Reid Augst added 13 points.