PHILADELPHIA (Interstat) — In a chaotic Atlantic 10 clash that required extra time to decide, Derek Simpson orchestrated a masterpiece, scoring 22 points and dishing out 11 assists to will Saint Joseph’s to a 97-90 overtime victory over Duquesne on Wednesday night at Hagan Arena.

The game, witnessed by 1,532 fans, was a pivotal early conference test for both teams, who entered and exited the contest with identical 9-7 overall records. It was Simpson, the Hawks’ guard from Mount Laurel, New Jersey, who transformed from a recent scoring slump into the dominant force, controlling the game’s tempo and delivering in its most critical moments.

Saint Joseph’s appeared to have the game in hand late in regulation, holding an 83-80 lead with under 30 seconds to play. Duquesne’s Alex Williams, who scored 16 points, connected on a hook shot with 37 seconds left to cut the deficit to one. After Saint Joseph’s Jaiden Glover hit two free throws, the Dukes’ Tarence Guinyard drove and was fouled with 22 seconds remaining. He made the first free throw but missed the second, leaving the Hawks ahead 83-81.

Duquesne immediately fouled Glover, who missed the front end of a one-and-one. Guinyard secured the rebound, raced upcourt, and found Jimmie Williams for a driving layup with just five seconds left, tying the game at 83 and forcing overtime.

The extra period belonged entirely to Simpson and the Hawks. After a sluggish start by both teams, Simpson found Austin Williford for a crucial 3-pointer to put Saint Joseph’s ahead 86-83. Williford finished with 16 points off the bench. Simpson then assisted on a Justice Ajogbor dunk and, after a Duquesne turnover, set up Williford for another layup to extend the lead to 91-86.

Duquesne, which scored only seven points in overtime, could not respond. The Dukes missed all five of their 3-point attempts in the extra session. Simpson sealed the game from the free-throw line, hitting three in the final 13 seconds to finish his double-double. Glover, a sophomore from Brooklyn, led all scorers with 28 points.

The Hawks’ efficiency proved decisive. They scored 97 points on 82 possessions, an offensive rating of 118.6, and capitalized on Duquesne’s mistakes, scoring 20 points off 14 Dukes turnovers. Saint Joseph’s also went 22 of 29 from the free-throw line, compared to Duquesne’s 13 of 15.

Duquesne was led by a balanced attack. Guinyard had 20 points and five assists, while David Dixon of Memphis posted 15 points and three blocks. Jakub Necas, from the Czech Republic, and Jimmie Williams each added 15 points. The Dukes won the battle in the paint, 46-44, and shot a higher percentage from the field (45.9% to 48.5%), but their 9-of-34 shooting from beyond the arc and the turnover disparity proved too much to overcome.

The game was a back-and-forth affair from the start. Saint Joseph’s took a 40-34 lead into halftime behind 13 first-half points from Glover. Duquesne responded with a 49-point second half, erasing multiple deficits before Williams’ last-second layup sent the game to overtime.

The victory snapped a two-game losing streak for Saint Joseph’s, which had dropped its first two conference games to Davidson and Saint Louis. Duquesne saw a two-game winning streak end following a double-overtime win at Davidson.

Saint Joseph’s next travels to face Richmond on Sunday. Duquesne returns home to host Dayton next Tuesday.