By TOMMY BRYAN
Mt. Juliet survived a late 9-0 Wilson Central run and managed a thrilling 76-73 overtime win over the Wildcats in front of a packed house Tuesday night.

The Golden Bears improved to 17-3 overall and took control of the District 9AAA race with a 7-0 record, despite spotty free throw shooting down the stretch and in the extra period.

"I goofed up," said MJ coach Troy Allen, "I was telling my best friend today that I had never coached a team that was shooting 77 percent on free throws. Then we come out and miss all those late in the game."

The Bears had a seemingly commanding 61-52 lead and the ball with 2:45 to go in regulation, but Central went on a 9-0 run to draw even at 61-61 with 1:18 left on a mid-range jumper by Dee Oldham.

Mt. Juliet held the ball for the last shot, but Caleb Chowbay's stepback three was off the mark and DaShawn McMurry's putback was missed -- sending the game into overtime.

Central took a brief 62-61 lead on free throw by Oldham, but Chowbay drained a 3-pointer for a 64-62 lead with 3:20 remaining.

The Belmont signee nailed a deep 3-pointer from the left wing at the 1:28 mark with his team clinging to a 66-65 lead.

"That's the beauty of Chowbay," Allen said, "there's not a lot of guys in the state with the guts to even take a shot that deep with the game on the line -- much less hit it. He's a pretty special guy, the quarterback, the point guard. He's going to take the shot and he's willing to deal with the circumstances if he misses. Some guys you just have to let 'em play."

McMurry led the Bears with 21 points while Chowbay added 20.

Oldham was magnificent in the loss, leading all scorers with 30. Jacob Williams added 14 and Tyler Soffiantino added 10.

Wilson Central slid to 14-3 overall and 6-1 with the loss.

The girls game found Mt. Juliet controlling the paint on offense and pitching a fourth quarter shutout for a 57-28 win in Tuesday's opener.

Leading 43-28 after three quarters, No. 6 ranked Mt. Juliet blanked the Lady Wildcats 14-0 over the final eight minutes.

Caya Williams led the assault with 26 points while sophomore Sally McCabe added 22. McCabe McCabe blocked seven Wilson Central shots.

Sydney Vanlandingham led WC with 12 points while Taylor Peterson added eight.

Mt. Juliet improved to 19-2 and 7-0 in District 9AAA. Central dropped to 12-5 / 5-2.