Box Score The Chico State men's basketball team took a nasty fall on Friday night. But the Wildcats weren't trippin' Saturday.
Chico State beat 12th-ranked Cal State San Bernardino 86-82 in overtime behind a trio of 20-point scorers. Amir Carraway finished with 22 points, Jordan Semple 21 points, 10 rebounds and four steals, and Rashad Parker poured in 20 points and five assists.
Carraway, fouled on a 3-point attempt with 10 seconds left, calmly cashed in on three free throws to tie the game and send it into extra time. He hit a 3-pointer on the first possession of overtime and the Wildcats held on behind Parker's six straight free throws down the stretch.
(Special thanks to Jason Halley of the Chico Enterprise-Record for the photos. Check out Jason's photo galleries from all four games this weekend at
www.chicoer.com. Also check out his videos synched up with Mike Baca's play-by-play
HERE.)
Chico State sustained one of its toughest losses in the Greg Clink era against UC San Diego Friday night, but with Saturday's win still solidified its hold on third place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) over the weekend. At 15-5 overall and 11-5 in the CCAA, the Wildcats lead Cal State Stanislaus, Cal State L.A. and San Francisco State by two games with six to play in the regular season. That lead was only one on Thursday.
Cal State San Bernardino slipped to 17-3 overall and 14-2 in the CCAA despite Jordan Burris' 31 points – the most scored by a Coyote since 2009.
However, Burris missed a pair of free throws with 17 seconds left – serenaded by the Chico State track & field team's Twister Sister tune "You're not gonna make it," – after Jordan Barton's bucket inside cut the deficit to 70-67.
Clink called Carraway's number and Kirby Gardner fouled him on a three-pointer from the left-hand corner.
After Carraway made the first two, Cal State San Bernardino Head Coach Jeff Oliver called a timeout in an attempt to ice him. No dice. Carraway canned the third and Lacy Haddock's long two-pointer at the buzzer was off-target.
Cal State San Bernardino shot a staggering 59 percent in the first half to build a 43-39 lead. But as those track athletes in the northwest corner of the gym must have know, that fast start wasn't sustainable. The Coyotes were 9-of-25 in the second half and Chico State caught them just before the finish line.
The Wildcats will hit the road for two weekends in a row before wrapping up the regular season at home against rival Humboldt State on Feb. 28 and conference co-leader Cal Poly Pomona on March 1.
