The Community Vikings are very quickly turning into the Bedford County version of the cardiac kids by playing their second overtime game in their last three outings, this time against District 9-A foe Middle Tennessee Christian.

Community junior Zach Haynes looks for some operating room amidst a sea of arms. (T-G Photo by Jimmy Jones) [Click to enlarge]

It took them two extra periods this time around, but the Vikings thrilled the home fans with a 49-47 come-from-behind win in a game they didn't lead until 1:03 remained in regulation.

Killen Middleton and Logan Siler hit long-range bombs to begin the third quarter and Andrew Kuhn tossed in four points as the game began to resemble a runaway. The Cougar defense held the Vikings (8-6, 3-3 9-A) to just eight points to lead 38-30 heading to the final quarter.

"I thought we might be in a bit of trouble when we took the floor in the last quarter," Viking coach Jace Bryant said, "We were down by eight in a very tightly-contested ballgame and that is a lot to make up in just eight minutes.

"Our defense stepped up and took over the game at that point."

Middle Tennessee Christian (10-7, 1-4) managed only one basket by Glenn Hollandsworth against the fired-up Purple and Gold defense and Wylder Norris and Justin Stallings combined for 10 points in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime.

Neither team was able to take advantage of prime opportunities to close out the game in their favor in the first extended period, though Community had the best chance when they held the ball the final 1:40 only to miss a shot that would have finished it.

The second overtime began with a steal, a quick timeout and then a perfect execution of a pick-and-roll play by Norris and Stallings, who would go on to hit two clutch free throws to help seal the deal for the Vikings and complete a regular-season sweep of the Cougars.

"Our kids played with a lot of heart out there tonight," Bryant said. "I was really pleased with the defensive intensity in the second half of the game, and we were able to put some points on the board after struggling earlier on.

"I told the kids in the locker room that we only scored 49 points in a double overtime game. We gave up way too many offensive boards and we missed too many shots that we didn't rebound, so we know that we are fortunate to get a win.

"The positive is that we won a game where we didn't play our best ball and that should give us a boost as the season progresses."

Stallings snared game-high honors with 18 points and Norris tallied 12.

MTC was led by Taylor Beckham's 15-point effort. Hollandsworth added 10.

Community connected on 9-of-11 attempts at the charity stripe, including 5-of-6 in overtime. The Cougars were 8-for-17.

Trailing 15-13, Community took turns trading baskets throughout the second stanza as it ended in a 25-22 advantage for the visitors.

Community welcomes Boyd Christian (4-13, 0-7) on Friday night for homecoming festivities.