Will Barton scored 20 points and Wesley Witherspoon added 12 as No. 15 Memphis held off Arkansas State 78-71 in overtime on Wednesday.

Memphis (6-0) looked as though it would run away with the game in the first 12 minutes when it held the Red Wolves (1-6) to two field goals en route to a 23-5 lead. But Arkansas State woke up, and two straight buckets from Malcoln Kirkland got the deficit down to 35-24 at the break.

The Red Wolves chipped away in the second half, and pulled to within 65-61 with less than three minutes remaining. Daniel Bryant’s 3-pointer with 2:10 left made it 65-64, and Bryant's free throw with 35 seconds left tied it. The Tigers did not score in the final five minutes of regulation.

Arkansas State scored the first four points of overtime before the Tigers roared back with nine straight points.

The Tigers' non-conference schedule gets a bit more daunting when they travel to No. 4 Kansas next week, and host No. 14 Georgetown on December 23.