Santa Barbara Holds Off Long Beach State

Long Beach State could not convert two possessions in the final 4.7 seconds Saturday, and UC Santa Barbara held on for a 67-66 Big West Conference victory in the Events Center.

Santa Barbara (9-12, 5-5) took a 67-63 lead with 21 seconds left on a basket by forward Doug Muse. It followed his steal of a Long Beach pass intended for Terrance O’Kelley.

But Rod Hannibal of Long Beach (10-6, 5-4) made a three-point shot with 12 seconds left, and Santa Barbara’s Wayne Butts missed both free throws after a foul by Brian Camper with nine seconds remaining.

Long Beach got the ball, and after timeouts by both teams, the ball was inbounded to O’Kelley. Muse blocked the shot, but Long Beach retained possession with 1.2 seconds remaining. After a timeout, Jeff Rogers lobbed the ball over the hands of Hannibal to end the game.

Four three-pointers by Hannibal helped the 49ers tie the score twice in the second half, the second time at 58-58.

Butts put the Gauchos up for good, 61-58, with a three-point shot with 4:11 to go. Rogers made a three-point shot, and Mike Atkinson hit a pair of free throws as the 49ers stayed close.

It was a messy first half. During one span, the teams combined to turn the ball over eight times in nine possessions. There were 24 turnovers in the first half alone.

Santa Barbara led, 34-30, at halftime.