SAN FRANCISCO — It's only November but the Dominican University of California men's basketball team won in buzzer-beater fashion on Friday night with a 60-58 victory over Stanislaus State in the CCAA/PacWest Challenge hosted by San Francisco State.
The Penguins (1-0) led by five at halftime, 37-32, and held the largest lead of the game at seven for a minute and a half late in the second half. That lead didn't hold though, as Stanislaus State (0-1) held the Penguins scoreless over three minutes and tied the game at 54-54 with 2:01 to play.
Reverend Maduakor drew a foul with 1:22 to go and made both of his free throws. Kyle Gouveia countered with a Warriors bucket and
Ryo Tawatari kept the Penguins in front with a three-pointer with 48 seconds remaining. With 19 seconds on the clock, Kaelen Mitchell knotted the game yet again with a three-pointer of his own.
In the Penguins' final possession,
Russell Davis set a high on-ball screen for Maduakor, who took the ball to the rim and went high off the glass for the game-winner with three seconds left. The Warriors pushed the ball downcourt for the potential tie but Gouveia's shot didn't leave his hand in time as time expired.
Maduakor scored a team-high 14 points. Tawatari added 11 points and junior transfer
Jeremiah Gray scored 10 points in his first appearance as a Penguin. Fellow junior transfer
Jordan Tribble pulled down a team-high eight rebounds in his first outing with the Penguins.
Mitchell added a game-high 17 points for the Warriors. Gouveia added 13 points. Vondel Faniel scored eight points and led all players with 10 rebounds.
The Penguins take on the host Gators on Saturday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.
