FARMVILLE, Va. – Sometimes it's better to win ugly than lose pretty, but that doesn't mean it has to feel good.

On a rare off-night, Longwood (7-3) struggled but survived an upset bid from Division III Frostburg State by riding a double-double from Damarion Geter and overtime heroics by both Shabooty Phillips and JaShaun Smith to a 68-65 win Friday in Willett Hall.

In the midst of their worst shooting game of the season, it took all of Geter's physicality and clutch shooting from both Smith and Phillips for Longwood to overcome a career night from Frostburg State guard Daniel Alexander, who carried the Bobcats with 33 points and 12 rebounds en route to his third straight game of 20-plus points.

Alexander played the entire 45 minutes and committed just two turnovers for the upset-minded Bobcats, hitting 12-of-23 shots to become the first 30-point scorer Longwood has allowed this season. Five of those makes came from beyond the three-point arc, including one that was part of a four-point play in overtime that cut Longwood's lead to 66-65 with 55 seconds remaining.

It was Alexander whom Frostburg State head coach Sean Brown entrusted with the ball on the final possession in overtime, but his junior guard's contested three-pointer skipped off the right side of the rim to seal the win for Longwood.

"There's not a whole lot positive to say about this game," said Longwood head coach Griff Aldrich. "We played extremely poorly throughout. Credit to Frostburg, they made a lot of good shots, but I'm extremely disappointed with our mental preparation and our mental focus throughout the game."

Frostburg State held Longwood to its second-lowest field goal percentage, three-point percentage and free throw percentage of the season, draping a pall on a win that was Longwood's fourth straight in Willett Hall and extended the program's best start since the 2000-01 season.

The Lancers shot under 37 percent from the field in both halves while hitting just 6-of-28 three-pointers before overtime. Geter stepped up in the paint in the second half, muscling away seven of his eight offensive rebounds to keep the Lancers in the game, but a 33-27 second-half scoring margin by Frostburg State dissolved a 14-point Longwood with just over five minutes to play.

Alexander was key to that second-half surge, scoring 12 of his 33 points after halftime and giving the Bobcats their first lead of the half by hitting a three-pointer with 5:32 remaining. Longwood fought back to reclaim the lead on a steal and a dunk by Jordan Cintron, but two possessions later Edwin Cole stunned the Longwood crowd by responding with a game-tying three-pointer with six seconds remaining.
 
The 6-8 Cole finished with eight points, 11 rebounds and four blocks before fouling out 26 seconds into overtime. Longwood outrebounded Frostburg State 8-1 after his departure, grabbing five of those on the offensive glass and converting them into seven point to pull away in the extra period.
 
"The lack of discipline in doing things we do was evident from the start of the game to the end of the game," Aldrich said. "There were very few points throughout the game where I felt like we were locked in and focused on doing what we teach our guys to do fundamentally and defensively. Offensively I thought we got the ball into the paint some, but then became just about getting the ball into the paint and throwing it back outside. Our aggressiveness and our ability to make layups was shockingly low."
 
For only the fourth time all season, Longwood finished without a 20-point scorer and instead relied on five double-digit scorers to share the scoring load. Phillips and fellow point guard Sean Flood shared the team lead with 13 points apiece, while Smith and Cintron added 12 and Geter finished with 10. Geter's impact showed up throughout the box score as well, adding three steals, two assists and two blocks in his 34 minutes of action.
 
But despite how the win came, the Lancers remain off to the best start of the program's 15-year Division I era with a 7-3 record that has made Aldrich one of the 10 winningest first-year head coach at the Division I level this season. The Lancers are 4-0 at Willett Hall for the first time since 2000-01 and have now picked up three of their seven wins in one-possession games.
 
Moreover, Longwood's win Friday came improved the team to 3-2 without leading scorer Isaiah Walton,  who has missed the past five games with an injury and is day-to-day to return.
 
"The thing I would say is they found a way to win," Aldrich said. "The ability to try to learn lessons while still winning, we're fortunate, rather than having to do it in a loss."
 
Now Longwood has less than 48 hours to prepare for a looming matchup this Sunday against a 5-2 Duquesne team that is undefeated at 4-0 at home. That game tips off at 1 p.m. in Pittsburgh, Pa., and will be Longwood's second matchup against an Atlantic 10 team this season after the Lancers defeated Richmond 65-58 on Nov. 9.
 
"The guys have had a hard week in the classroom with exam week, but this game was scheduled to help us get the rust off," Aldrich said. "To turn around and play probably the toughest game on our schedule is going to be a challenge for our guys. I think they're up to it, I think they'll battle. They've battled throughout. Again, the guys are hungry to be successful, but I just think our mental focus was extremely disappointing tonight."