COLLEGE BASKETBALL / CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT FINALS : The Clock Finally Runs Out on Pacific : Big West: New Mexico State wins, 74-73, to receive automatic NCAA tournament bid.

University of the Pacific guard Tony Amundsen lay sprawled on the basketball court at the Long Beach Arena, groping for the ball as the final seconds of the Big West tournament championship game ticked off Sunday afternoon.

With Pacific behind by a point with 2.4 seconds to play, Amundsen, who was the third Tiger with a chance to grab the potential game-tying free throw miss of teammate Randy Lavender, believed he had the ball. He signaled frantically for time out with two New Mexico State players falling over him.

But the game ended, allowing New Mexico State to win first Big West tournament title, 74-73, before 1,631.

The Aggies, who have won six consecutive games, earned the only NCAA tournament bid awarded to a Big West team, but as has been the case for many years with Big West teams other than Nevada Las Vegas, its placement in the tournament could mean an early exit. Despite its 23-7 record, New Mexico State is seeded 12th in the West Regional. It plays fifth-seeded DePaul on Thursday in Tempe, Ariz. In 12 previous appearances, the Aggies are 7-14 in NCAA tournament play.

In a tournament that was most notable for which team wasn’t here (nine-time Big West champion UNLV was banned from postseason play as part of sanctions imposed by the NCAA), parity was what conference officials promised, and that’s what the tournament delivered.

New Mexico State struggled in its tournament opener against Fresno State, winning by a point in overtime, then beat Cal State Long Beach, 80-72, Saturday night in a physical game.

Pacific lost five of its first six Big West regular-season games and came into the tournament with a 12-15 record. Coach Bob Thomason settled on a final lineup only two weeks before the postseason tournament began.

On Sunday, Pacific, which was 11 for 25 from three-point range, got 25 points from guard Dell Demps and 19 from Amundsen. New Mexico, which shot 54.7%, got 19 points and 11 rebounds from forward Eric Traylor, who had been inconsistent in his first two tournament games, and 10 assists from the tournament’s most valuable player, guard Sam Crawford.

“All I was concerned with was winning,” said Crawford, who ranks second in the nation in assists. “All-district, all-conference all-tournament is fine, but all I was concerned with was winning.”

Crawford, a second team all-Big West choice, led the tournament in assists (26) and steals (10) and finished 10 points behind No. 1 Demps (69) in total scoring.

Still, the game still came down to the final 3.6 seconds and two free throws by Lavender.

With Pacific trailing, 74-72, Lavender went to the line after he was fouled by New Mexico’s Chris Hickman from behind.

Lavender, a 62% free-throw shooter, sank the front end of the two-shot situation, but missed the second. The ball was tipped back to Lavender, who got his left hand on it. But faced with pressure from Cliff Reed, he lost the ball. It went left of the key to Demps, who fought Traylor off, but lost the ball in the direction of Amundsen near the top of the key.

With Crawford on his back, Amundsen dove for the ball, appeared to come up with it in time and signaled for a timeout.

Official Richard Ballesteros appeared to acknowledge Amundsen before time ran out, but Jim Stupin waved the game off as the buzzer sounded.

Pacific took a 30-21 lead, but New Mexico went on a 13-2 run and led, 34-32, with 1:03 left in the first half following a basket by William Benjamin.

The Aggies led by as many as 11 points several times in the second half.

But three consecutive three-pointers by Demps wrapped around two free throws by New Mexico State’s Hickman got the Tigers within 71-70, with 49 seconds to play.