MERCED, Calif. - Mason Westlake crashed the boards and converted a put back as time expired to help University of California, Merced men's basketball team edge Menlo College in the final game before Thanksgiving, 72-70 Tuesday night inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium.
The Bobcats (6-2) extend their home winning streak to a program-best five games and have beat a pair of GSAC teams and a NCAA Division II team during the run.
Westlake's game-winner was the first of his career. The sequence started after Menlo hit a pair of foul shots to tie the game at 70 with 13.2 seconds remaining. Having to go the full 90 feet, Ryan Haywood brought the ball up the floor and after coming around a screen from Kingsley Obiorah, attempted to win it with a triple but it was long.
Like Haywood, Westlake was beyond the arc when the shot hit the backboard. However, he charged in quick to grab the ball on the left block and released a successful off balanced attempt all in one motion to win the game.
The buzzer beater capped off an already solid performance with 20 points on 60% (6-10) shooting from beyond the arc. Leading up to the final seconds, Westlake had converted his last four attempts from downtown.
Chiwike E'denchukwu matched Westlake with 20 points and shot 62% (8-13) from the floor, 66% (2-3) from the three-point line. He also grabbed a season-high nine rebounds, blocked a shot and notched a steal in 34 minutes of floor time.
Seth Cobb was good for 14 points on a night where he only missed once (5-6), while Ryan Haywood and Raphael Durr added eight and seven points, respectively.
Haywood added a career-high eleven assists to his scoring efforts, the second most in the California Pacific Conference this year and most by any UC Merced player since Christian Chapman had eleven on November 7, 2014.
Durr had five assists and a steal.
As a team, the Bobcats shot extremely well from deep (48%, 14-29) and UC Merced made its first three triples to turn a 5-0 deficit into a 9-8 lead. Durr hit the first deep shot, followed by Haywood and E'denchukwu.
E'denchukwu's make less than three minutes into the game was the first of 13 lead changes in the first half. Four minutes later, Westlake's first triple tied the score at 14 and one more three ball a couple possessions after had the Bobcats up 17-16 ten minutes before intermission.
The Bobcats largest lead in the first half was three, 25-22 following a Cobb triple and free throw conversion from Kingsley Obiorah. The home team also led by three at 30-27 but failed to score in the final two minutes and trailed Menlo 35-30 at halftime. Menlo outrebounded the Bobcats 19-9 in the first 20 minutes.
Menlo opened the second half with seven straight points and forced two Bobcat turnovers to take the first double figure lead of the night at 42-30. The 15-0 run that started late in the first half was halted by a Haywood make from the foul line with 16:02 to play.
Haywood scored the next time down the floor and E'denchukwu buried a three ball after that to cut the deficit in half, 42-36. The teams traded buckets the next 90 seconds and it was an eight point game, 50-42 with 13 minutes left.
Then a UC Merced game-changing 12-0 run happened. Westlake started it with a triple, while E'denchukwu slammed one down and was the victim of a flagrant foul on the play. He hit both foul shots to make it 50-49. One possession later, the athletic forward beat his man in the paint to give the Bobcats their first lead since the opening half.
Cobb capped the run with a long ball to put the Bobcats up 54-50 with 10:48 on the game clock.
Menlo answered with five straight points to retake the lead but never led again as 50 seconds later Cobb buried another triple.
With 4:04 on the clock, UC Merced held its biggest lead of the night at 68-60. The lead was cut in half two minutes later and the Bobcats struggled to score down the stretch allowing Menlo opportunities to go in front. Although the Oaks didn't grab a lead, they did tie the game at 70 due to the foul shots mentioned at the top of the page.
Westlake's buzzer beater followed. The Bobcats victory after trailing by 12 points is the biggest come from behind win since December 28, 2018. It is also the sixth win under head coach Kevin Pham after trailing by double figures.
Other notables from Tuesday night's win include limiting Menlo to just five offensive rebounds and forcing the Oaks into 13 turnovers.
The Bobcats had more assists than turnovers for the fourth time this year, 18 assists compared to 16 turnovers.
Looking ahead, the Bobcats visit Sacramento State University for an exhibition contest on Tuesday, December 3. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:05pm inside The Nest.
