January 29, 1998
By SCOTT M. JOHNSON
Enterprise staff writer
Bob Williams will take it. But even the UC Davis men's basketball coach knows his team had luck on its side.
In the most exciting and controversial Northern California Athletic Conference game of the season, Williams' UCD squad took advantage of a technical foul call with two seconds left and two subsequent Chris Vlasic free throws for a 78-77 win over Chico State at Acker Gym on Wednesday.
``We got lucky,'' said UCD point guard Dante Ross, who scored 15 points and added seven assists and seven steals. ``We got real lucky. We played bad, and this game we got lucky.''
The Wildcats (13-6 overall, 4-3 NCAC) appeared to win the game when guard Deon Robinson hit a 10-footer with two seconds left to give Chico a 77-76 lead. But the Wildcats were assessed a technical foul when players, coaches and a few fans stormed the court thinking the game was over.
Vlasic then stepped in and buried two free throws amid a chorus of boos from 1,878 screaming fans as the Aggies (17-2, 5-0) rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit to remain unbeaten in the Northern California Athletic Conference.
``I didn't even know what was going on,'' said Vlasic, who led the Aggies with 17 points. ``All of the sudden I was shooting free throws. I just tried to relax myself. It's a shot I've practiced all my life, just like everybody else.
``... They had the place rocking. I just tried to concentrate on the ball and the rim and go through my routine. But they had that gym rocking. That was probably one of the loudest gyms I've ever been in.''
Williams, who agreed with the referee's decision to call the technical, was relieved that his team was able to come out on top after its first true test of the NCAC season.
``You don't see our guys jumping up and down,'' Williams said. ``You don't see our guys celebrating. We don't feel like we played very well. We feel like we played against a very, very good team.''
Vlasic's free throws were even more impressive considering the Aggies were having one of their worst shooting performances from the line all season. UCD hit only 6 of 15 free throws in the first half and was 13 of 23 for the game.
Despite the confusion on the court, Williams wasted no time in selecting Vlasic, one of the Aggies' hottest shooters as of late, to take the game-winning shots.
``I put him in there because I had a gut feeling,'' Williams said. ``If Chris would have missed those, would I have been second guessing myself for not putting Dante on the line? Sure. Any coach would have. Either one of those guys are great clutch players, and they proved it in the past.''
The free throws did not clinch the victory, however. UCD was unable to inbound the ball on the ensuing possession, giving Chico State one final chance to win. But Andre Speech, who led all scorers with 24 points, missed a 3-point attempt from about 30 feet as time expired.
``Everybody thought that the buzzer went off,'' Speech said of the crucial technical call. ``There was no time left, so we were happy we hit the shot and we thought the game was over.''
If nothing else, the Wildcats proved they can play with the first-place Aggies, setting the stage for an exciting game when the two teams meet again Saturday at Hamilton Court.
Chico led by as many as nine in the first half and 41-34 at halftime when Speech hit a follow shot at the buzzer. But, as has been the case in nearly every UCD game this season, the Aggies came flying out of the gate in the second half of the up-tempo game. Behind 7-of-11 shooting from behind the three-point arc in the second half, UCD took a nine-point lead of its own with eight minutes remaining before Chico inched back into the game.
After two Derek Byrd free throws brought the Wildcats to within 76-75 with 47 seconds remaining, Vlasic missed a shot on UCD's next trip down the court to keep Chico's hopes alive.
Robinson took the inbounds pass and drove all the way inside the 3-point line before misfiring with about seven seconds left. After coming up with a loose ball on the rebound, Robinson put back the shot that sent his team's bench and fans onto the floor.
``I just tried to take the ball and beat the clock and get the shot up,'' said Robinson, who celebrated with a victory lap after hitting the shot. ``... I guess people came on the floor, I don't know.''
Robinson had 15 points for the Wildcats, while Byrd (16) and Marquis Smith (10) also scored in double figures.
``You're going to be down after a game like that,'' Speech said. ``We left our hearts out on the court and gave it 110 percent.''
Chico State coach Puck Smith was careful about commenting on the technical foul, but it's safe to say he disagreed with the call.
``My guys thought the game was over with,'' Smith said. ``I won't even comment on (the technical). My team played their hearts out. They made a great comeback, and I really feel bad for them.''
Even some of the Aggies admitted that the circumstances marred the win a bit.
``We were like a couple of heavyweights out there trading punches,'' Vlasic said. ``It was kind of like a technical knockout. It was decided on a referee's decision. You don't want to see the referees decide a game like that.''
UCD guard Scott Darmstadt, who led the Aggies with nine rebounds, said the call was justified.
``That's what the rule is there for,'' Darmstadt said. ``If you could bend it anytime, it wouldn't be there. The only way to enforce it is to do it every time.''
Vlasic just hopes Saturday's game isn't quite so close ... or controversial.
``I really don't feel like we won tonight,'' said Vlasic, who was shooting 84 percent from the line for the season entering the game but hit only three of his first six free throws Wednesday. ``I feel like the technical took away from the game.''
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