Aggies capture playoffs: Men, women go to NCAA regional

Friday night's playoff championship game had all the makings of a nightmare for the UC Davis men's basketball team. In the end, however, it was a dream win for the Aggies at Rec Hall.

Dante Ross' basket with two seconds remaining gave Davis a 59-57 victory over Sonoma State and brought the Aggies a fourth consecutive title in the Northern California Athletic Conference playoffs.

The Davis women also prevailed, winning their seventh straight NCAC playoff title with a 52-48 win over Sonoma State in Rohnert Park.

The Aggies' men, 26-2 and ranked No. 9 in the nation, claimed a berth in next week's NCAA Division II West Region tournament. Davis, ranked No. 1 in the West, has submitted a bid to host the March 5-7 tournament and will learn Sunday whether they will be home or at Cal State Bakersfield, ranked No. 2 in the West.

Before 1,288, the Aggies used their patented second-half surge to take a 40-27 lead three minutes into the half. They led 29-27 at halftime, but an 11-0 run to start the half gave the Aggies a 13-point lead.

Then came the nightmare for Davis.

The Cossacks (15-12) cut the lead to 49-41 with seven minutes remaining. They closed to 51-46 with 5:43 left. And finally, they moved ahead 57-55 with one minute to go on a Brian Carson three-pointer.

"One of the things we did early in the season was put a team away when we had the chance," said Aggies coach Bob Williams. "We had them on their heels this game but just couldn't put them away."

The Aggies tied the score with 33 seconds left on freshman Scott Darmstadt's basket and regained possession with 12 seconds to play after the Cossacks' Jason Gunnarson missed a three-pointer.

The Aggies called timeout and put the game in Ross' hands.

"That didn't surprise me," said Sonoma coach Pat Fuscaldo. "There's no question he is the best player in the league and I'd want him with the ball with 12 seconds left."

Said Williams: "I told Dante that if they came out in the zone to get the ball to (Chris) Vlasic or (Justis) Durkee and let them shoot. But if they were in man-to-man, it was his decision to try to score or to pass off."

The 5-foot-9 Ross is quick and a great leaper with the ability to dunk. When Ross received the inbound pass at midcourt and saw the Cossacks' man-to-man defense, he thought one thing: take the ball under and try to score.

"When I looked up at the clock and saw eight seconds left, I wasn't about to give it up," Ross said. "I was going to drive to the basket and either clang it off the backboard and go into overtime or win the game."

Ross made a three-foot fadeaway for the game-winner.

"This is a great springboard, a great win for us going into the playoffs," said J.C. Timmons, who led the Aggies with 13 points.

UCD women 52, Sonoma State 48 in Rohnert Park -- Jessica Thome hit 5 of 6 free throws down the stretch and the Aggies held the Cossacks without a basket for nearly nine minutes in the second half.

Davis (21-6) earned the NCAC's automatic bid for next week's Division II West Region tournament.

No one scored in double figures for the Aggies, who trailed 27-24 at halftime. Kristen Coolidge, Liz Doud and Thome each had nine points.

Jann Thorpe had 15 points for the Cossacks (20-7).