COLLEGE ROUNDUP : Middleton Steals the Victory for Chapman in Chico Tourney

Rog Middleton stole the ball, then went the length of the court for a dunk as time ran out to give Chapman College a 70-68 victory over Chico State in the final of the Chico State Tournament Sunday in Chico.

Chapman (9-6) led by as many as 13 points in the second half but Chico rallied to tie it at 68 with about a minute left.

Chapman then turned the ball over and Chico was setting up for a final shot when Middleton, the tournament’s most valuable player, stole the ball, and moved in for the winning slam.

“This is a big step for us,” Chapman Coach Bob Boyd said. “We have not been a good road team until now. We stress defense and it really paid off at the end for us.”

Middleton finished with 23 points and Andre Hill had 13. Zlatko Josic and Frantz Reyes each had 12 points for Chapman, which shot 59.9% (29 of 51) from the field. Josic also had a team-high six assists.

Middleton scored 33 points in Saturday’s victory over Texas A&I; in the semifinal round.

In the Fullerton Wrestling Invitational:

Fresno State won the team title with 153 1/2 points, and Cal State Fullerton was second with 124 points. Fullerton’s Michael Grubbs (118 pounds), Ramon Diaz (177) and heavyweight David Jones won individual titles.