When Damian Archer knocked down a short jumper with less than a minute to go Saturday afternoon against Lane, Miles had a seven-point lead and looked ready to celebrate a hard-fought victory. That celebration finally came but there was a lot of drama that ensued before the Golden Bears secured a 73-71 win at Knox-Windham Gymnasium.

On a day when the Golden Bears got just 24 points from their starters, Jeffrey Dockett (19 points, four assists) and Archer (12 points, five rebounds) picked up the slack as Miles (4-12, 3-6 SIAC West) remained in good position to win the Western Division crown despite a less-than-stellar conference mark halfway through the league schedule. The Dragons (6-10, 4-7), who are also in contention, got a monster effort from Kendarius Ash (20 points, 18 rebounds) but was unable to pull out the victory.

Within 10 seconds of the Archer bucket, Lane had cut the deficit to two points. Myles Lee knocked down a 3-pointer and Nathan Sheffield's inbound pass went right into the hands of Tevyn Roberts, who converted the easy layup. Sheldon Wright would split a pair of free throws but as he missed the second, no one was guarding Terrace Holt at the other basket. He caught a full-court baseball pass off the rebound and easily converted the bucket to draw the Dragons to within 71-70 with 24 seconds left.

Dockett would get fouled on the Golden Bears next possession but he split two free throws. Lee would get fouled on the other end with 4.2 seconds left and had a chance to tie the game from the free throw line. He would miss the first but make the second. Dockett was fouled quickly but Miles - which is statistically the worst free throw shooting team in the SIAC - made just one of two giving the Dragons one more opportunity. But they threw the ball away and Wright was able to secure the loose ball to stave off what would have been a devastating defeat.

Despite the close finish, Miles looked solid shooting the ball for a good portion of the game. The Golden Bears shot 50 percent from the field, a number upped to just under 54 percent in the first half. Archer made all four of his attempts and little-used guard D.J. Mitchell (eight points) - who has seen his playing time increase this week - went 3-of-4 from the field. Even freshman guard La'Darius Carter got in on the fun when he knocked down a 3-pointer with six minutes left before halftime that gave Miles a 21-20 lead after falling behind by as many as seven points.

Lane trailed 37-33 at the half but was able to retake the lead when Holt knocked down a 3-pointer near the 14-minute mark of the second half. But Dockett, who scored 13 points in the second half, answered with a triple of his own and Miles would not lose the lead again, seemingly having an answer each time Lane got close.

Miles looks to stay on the winning track when it hosts LeMoyne-Owen Monday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.