ROCK HILL, S.C. -- When it comes to postseason tournament play, no game is a given. Teams are fighting for tomorrows that may not come with a defeat.

Miles will most likely have additional games next week in the NCAA Division II South Region tournament. But the 19th-ranked Golden Bears faced the real specter of not having an opportunity to win a third straight SIAC title with 10 seconds left in regulation of its matchup in the TIAA 2022 SIAC Tournament quarterfinals against Fort Valley State.

Then up stepped Elijah Horton.

The second-year freshman guard calmly sank a 27-foot 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left in regulation to send the game into overtime. From there, the Golden Bears dominated the upset-minded Wildcats in posting a 65-53 win Wednesday afternoon at the Rock Hll Sports & Event Center. The win was the 18th straight for Miles (24-3), which advances to the semifinals on Friday afternoon against the winner of the Benedict-LeMoyne-Owen matchup.

FVSU was pesky throughout regulation and the Golden Bears could never quite put away the East Division No. 5 seed. Despite shooting just 21 percent in the first half, the Wildcats trailed just 20-18 at the break. Miles used a 12-2 run early in the second half, punctuated by a Horton slam, to open a 34-23 advantage with 13:24 left in the second half. In many instances this season, when Miles goes on that kind of run, the opposition is in big-time trouble,

The Wildcats, who trailed by eight points with less than six minutes remaining, then went on a 12-0 run over the next five minutes. KJ Doucet converted a 3-point play with 1:50 to go in regulation for a 48-44 lead. Things still looked bleak after Doucet converted two free throws with 10 seconds left for a 50-47 advantage.

Going full court, Brandon Miller drove towards the basket. In a play that looked similar to one Villanova ran in 2016 to win the Division I title, Miller fed the trailing Horton who drained the deep 3-ball to knot the score at 50. A three-quarter court shot by FVSU fell short and the game went into overtime.

With an opportunity to reset before the extra period, Miles defense extinguished any chance the Wildcats had to regain momentum. Mykayle Carter (17 points, eight rebounds) knocked down a 3-pointer to give Miles the lead and Miller (11 points, seven rebounds, eight assists) added another one two possessions later. Those were the only two shots the Golden Bears took from the field in overtime.

Meanwhile, FVSU kept hoisting contested shots...and missing them. The Wildcats missed their first seven shots from the field and the Golden Bears would open a 10-point advantage. They went 1-for-12 from the floor in overtime and shot just 28 percent for the game as Miles won going away.

Doucet scored 25 points and Kenton Eskridge added 10 to lead Fort Valley State. Horton had 12 points, Joel Logan had four points and a game-high 12 rebounds, and Yasim Hooker finished with nine points and seven rebounds for the Golden Bears.