ANAHEIM, Calif. – For 44 minutes and 59 seconds on Friday night, Cal State Fullerton and UC Davis played to a stalemate. The teams were tied 11 times and traded the lead on nine occasions in the second Big West Tournament semifinal at Honda Center. The final possession of the night decided the winner and, unfortunately for the Titans, it was No. 2 seeded Aggies that celebrated when the clock hit all zeroes.
UC Davis' Chima Moneke hit a layup as time expired on an offensive rebound off a missed 3-pointer by Siler Schneider in overtime to defeat Cal State Fullerton, 66-64, Friday night at Honda Center.
The Titans (17-14) overcame a nine-point second half deficit to force the extra period and had a pair of shots at the end of regulation and overtime to come out ahead, but it was not to be as the Aggies (21-12) advanced to Saturday night's championship game against UC Irvine at 8:30 p.m.
Tre' Coggins led Fullerton with 22 points while Khalil Ahmad added 14 points and Lionheart Leslie scored 12 points to go with a game-high five steals.
But it was Moneke that was a thorn in the Titans' side right down to the end as he led the way for the Aggies with his league-leading 13th double-double, posting 19 points and 14 rebounds, seven offensive including the game-winning put back as time expired. He helped lead the Aggies win the battle on the glass as they outrebounded Fullerton 48-40 on the night. The Titans also surrendered 15 offensive boards that led to 20 second-chance points for UC Davis.
Brynton Lemar had 23 points to go with seven rebounds for the Aggies, the only other player in double figures for UC Davis.
Fullerton fell behind by nine with 14:22 left in the second half before the Titans guard trio of Coggins, Ahmad and Leslie ignited a 10-2 scoring run to make it a one-point ball game at the halfway mark of the second.
The Titans eventually came all the way back to tie the game with two free throws from Austen Awosika with 6:50 left in regulation.
Then, with the score tied at 48, Fullerton took its first lead since the 13:10 mark of the first half after Davon Clare fumbled the ball in the paint, causing a mad scramble. Luckily for the Titans, Leslie was there to scoop up the loose ball and hit a shot over three Aggies defenders to put the Titans ahead 50-48 with 2:13 left.
The Aggies would retake the lead after hitting three free throws before Coggins drilled a pull up 3-pointer with 1:07 left to put the Titans back in front by two.
Lemar would tie the score at 55 apiece with 28 seconds left and then, with the final possession of regulation, Ahmad got himself open for a 3-pointer from the wing but caught the front iron as the buzzer blew, sending the game into overtime.
In the extra period, the teams exchanged the lead five times and were deadlocked four times with the Titans hitting 5-of-7 from the free throw line while the Aggies went 4-for-8 from the field. But it was the glass that proved to be the difference as UC Davis outrebounded Fullerton 8-2 in the extra period including four offensive rebounds, helping the Aggies erase a pair of three-point deficits and eventually pull out the win.
Coggins had a chance to put Fullerton up by three with 15 seconds left in OT but his 3-pointer rimmed out, giving the Aggies the final possession of the game. The Aggies took the board and went straight down the court, finding Schneider on the wing and he raised up with his go-ahead attempt but missed everything except the backboard. However, Moneke perched himself in perfect position under the basket to rebound the miss and put in an uncontested layup as time expired.
Despite the loss, Fullerton's season will continue as the Titans have accepted a bid to participate in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). More information will be available in the upcoming days on FullertonTitans.com.
Notes: Friday night's game marked the 19th overtime game in Big West Conference Tournament history… The Titans are now 17-16 all-time against UC Davis and 0-2 against the Aggies in the Big West Tournament.
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