BOX SCORE

SEASIDE, Calif. — The Cal State L.A. women's basketball team advanced to the CCAA title game thanks to a miracle buzzer-beater to upset top-ranked UC San Diego Friday night. So it was only fitting that the Golden Eagles found themselves hoist by their own petard Saturday night as Cal State Monterey Bay won with a buzzer beater of its own to down CSULA 71-69 and claim the 2012 CCAA Championship Tournament title.

Cal State L.A. had rallied from a 20-point second half deficit to tie the game on a pair of Lacy Ramon free throws with 42 seconds remaining. But tournament MVP Brittani Jefferson's (Palmdale/Quartz Hill HS) proved to be the heroine this night. CSUMB used every tenth of the final 42 ticks of the clock, grabbing three offensive rebounds in the final nine seconds before Jefferson's putback just beat the final buzzer, breaking a 69-69 tie as time expired.
The win secures the CCAA's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament for CSUMB (21-8), which captured its first CCAA Tournament title after falling in the championship game last season. Cal State L.A. (18-11) sits on the tournament bubble. The NCAA will announce the 2012 tournament field Sunday at 7 p.m. Pacific time.

“I don't think this is the game plan we had in mind,” said CSUMB Head Coach Renee Jimenez. “But it's March and at this time of year games come down to plays like that. You kind of hope and pray it doesn't come down to that, but that's the beauty of March Madness.

“This shows you that these guys are winners,” she continued. “That's what they do and that's who we recruit.”

Jefferson, who was playing her first championship game at any level, said she wasn't expecting to play the role she played so well.

“I had no idea this was going to happen,” the junior forward said. “Lucky me, the winning shot.”

“We have a lot of fight in this team,” said senior guard Erika Ward (Simi Valley/Royal HS/Ventura JC), who scored 17 points and joined Jefferson on the all-tournament team. “We're a never say die team. Last night we were down (13 in a 71-65 win over Chico State) and tonight we had the big lead and gave that up, but we held tough and never had a doubt we were going to win.”
The Otters seemed to take control of the game late in the first half, ending the period on a 14-5 run to take a 43-28 lead into the lockerroom. The Otters expanded their advantage to 20 points twice before the Golden Eagles made a valiant charge. 

CSULA finally cut its deficit to single digits, 59-50, on a pair of Ramon free throws with 7:26 remaining, but didn't forge its first tie since the fourth possession of the game until Ramon's free throws inside the final minute.

Jefferson finished Saturday's game with her sixth double-double of the season, grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds to go along with 11 points. Junior guard Jessica Fontenette (Corona/Bishop Amat) added a career-high 15 points and joined Ward and Jefferson on the all-tournament team.

All-tournament team members Tessondra Williams (22 points) and Ramon (19) led CSULA. Jazzi Johnson chipped in a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double for the Golden Eagles.