Tyson Powell takes a shot over a Cuyamaca defender in the Dons 66-65 win.
Tyson Powell takes a shot over a Cuyamaca defender in the Dons 66-65 win.
December 1, 2015

Late Free Throws Give Dons Win over Cuyamaca

Roger Hamel hit a pair of free throws with 0.4 seconds left in the game to give the Dons a 66-65 win over Cuyamaca College.

Box Score

SANTA ANA - After eight lead changes and six ties, the Dons used a pair of free throws with 0.4 seconds left on the clock to defeat visiting Cuyamaca College in a non-conference game. The win was the first of the season for the Dons (1-6) and came in their first home game.

Cuyamaca (1-5) had taken a four-point lead at 65-61 with 16 seconds remaining after two made free throws by Zach Kissel before Tyson Powell hit a running three-pointer from just inside halfcourt with five seconds left.

Down 65-64, the Dons committed an intentional foul with three seconds remaining. Cuyamaca missed the front end of the one-and-one bonus and Powell quickly passed the rebound to Hamel at halfcourt. A Cuyamaca defender stepped under Hamel to commit the foul and send him to the free throw line where he hit the winning free throws.

Prior to the last-second heroics, neither team ever established control of the game. Cuyamaca owned the largest lead of the game at 10 points late in the first half, while the Dons largest lead, six points, came in the first three minutes of the game.

After taking a seven-point lead at the half, Cuyamaca matched that seven-point lead twice, representing the largest lead of the second half. After leading 47-44 on a Powell jumper with 10:12 left in the second half, the Dons wouldn't lead again until the final free throw.

Powell finished the game tied for the game-high with 18 points while De'Jon Frazier added 13 points. Devon Edmonds and Hamel contributed 11 points apiece to round out the Dons scorers in double digits. Noah Wellington contributed with a game-high nine assists. For Cuyamaca, Jon Irving scored 18 points while John Scales scored 15.