Cuesta College men’s basketball team downs Yuba with buzzer-beating 3-pointer

The Cuesta College men’s basketball team wrapped up the Allan Hancock Tournament with a nailbiting win Sunday, beating Yuba 71-69.

Cuesta, which finished as the tournament runner-up, was trailing by one with 0.9 seconds remaining and had the ball. Coach Rusty Blair said he called a timeout three times to explain the inbound play, but felt Yuba caught wind of the play and so he made a last-second adjustment.

The play resulted in Karem Ozel getting a “wide-open look for 3,” Blair said. Ozel nailed it for the win as the buzzer sounded.

Yuba, the No. 4-ranked team in the state in the California Community College Athletic Association poll, has three players committed to Division I colleges, Blair said.

“That’s a heck of a team to face up to. We seemed to be up to the task today. It was like playing a Division I team,” he said. “I’m really happy we got this win against one of the best teams in the state.”

Rafael Eleftheriou scored 16 points to lead the Cougars (4-2), and was named to the all-tournament team. Ozel finished with 15 points, all in the second half. Roberto Mantovani added 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Cuesta will play in the Citrus Tournament beginning Friday.

This story was originally published November 22, 2015 at 6:36 PM with the headline "Cuesta College men’s basketball team downs Yuba with buzzer-beating 3-pointer."