Chapman Falls in Overtime, 90-84 : But, It’s Cal State Los Angeles That Is Wearing the Frown

Along with a tie and a sports coat, Cal State Los Angeles Coach Jim Newman wears a scowl to each of his Golden Eagles’ basketball games. It’s a grim, intimidating, downright mean look.

And it was there from start to finish Friday night, as Newman frowned and frowned as Cal State Los Angeles struggled and struggled against a limping Chapman College team that somehow managed to take the 8-3 Eagles into overtime.

And although Cal State Los Angeles prevailed in the extra period, winning, 90-84, at Chapman’s Hutton Sports Center, Newman’s scowl was still doing what it does best while his players showered and readied for their bus ride home.

Finally, Newman’s face relented as the coach answered reporters’ questions. After a while, at long last, a smile.

“A game like that can be good for a team,” Newman said, pausing for effect.

“If,” he finally added, “you win it.”

And that was about the only good news the Cal State Los Angeles coach could report after the Eagles’ narrow escape against the 4-10 Panthers (0-2 in the California Collegiate Athletic Assn.). Chapman, with its best player (Jon Samuelson) in street clothes and his usual replacement (Paul Rollins) weakened by the flu, out-shot, out-hustled and out-played the team favored by many to win the CCAA.

The Panthers led by nine with eight minutes to go and were tied at 74-74 with 50 seconds left and the ball.

But then, a breakdown.

Working for a shot against the Eagles’ pressing defense, Chapman guard Jimmy Saia tried to dump the ball to teammate Mike Kelly near midcourt. Instead, he dumped it into the arms of Cal State Los Angeles’ Shawn Holiday, who moved in and took the ball to the other end of the floor--before he was intentionally fouled by Kelly.

That gave Holiday two foul shots and the Eagles the basketball with 14 seconds left. Holiday made both and Cal State Los Angeles inbounded the ball with a 76-74 lead.

Newman was so happy, he almost grinned.

“At that point, I thought we had the ballgame,” Newman said.

But Chapman, surprisingly, had one move left. The Panthers immediately fouled Marty Heede, who missed the front end of a one-and-one situation.

The outlet went quickly downcourt to Chapman guard Wayne Briggs, who set up on the baseline, 20 feet from the basket, and made his only basket of the night.

With just five seconds remaining, it was enough to send the Panthers into overtime.

There, Chapman’s defensive strategy was foul away. Cal State Los Angeles is vulnerable at the free throw line--shooting just 53.4%--but on this night, the Panthers got tangled up with the wrong guy.

They kept fouling Holiday, the senior point guard who usually acts as quiet playmaker in support of glitzy, gunner Sam Veal. But Holiday responded by hitting all eight of his foul shots in the extra period--keeping the Panthers at arm’s length until the final buzzer.

Holiday wound up with 30 points--14 coming from the foul line. And for the Eagles, those points couldn’t have come at a better time. Veal, who averages 21 points a game, managed just 15 Friday, converting 5-of-14 field-goal attempts.

For Chapman, the defeat will go down as its seventh in the Panthers’ last eight games. But to leave it at that, in Coach Kevin Wilson’s view, would be an injustice.

Chapman was again playing without leading scorer and rebounder Samuelson, who has a torn thigh muscle, an injury that could delay his CCAA debut until February.

Yet without Samuelson, the Panthers came up a turnover away from victory.

And Jim Newman, at last sight, was still smiling.