Dec 28, 2001
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) - Kyle Bailey's bank shot with 1.1 seconds left gave Santa Clara a come-from-behind 59-58 victory Friday over the University of Maryland-Baltimore County in the opening game of the Cable Car Classic.
Santa Clara (3-8) trailed 54-45 with 5:36 remaining, but the Broncos rallied to take a 55-54 lead after Steve Ross' two foul shots with 2:17 left. Eleven of Santa Clara's last 16 points came from the foul line.
After Brian Vaka missed the first of two free throws, the Broncos led by one at 57-56 with :28 seconds left on the clock. The Terriers' Will McClurkin connected on a short jumper in the lane to give UMBC a 58-57 lead with :13 left in the game
Bronco head coach Dick Davey was calling for a timeout in the final seconds. However, Bailey was unable to see the coach's signal and drove to the left side of the basket and connected on the game winner with just 1.1 left on the clock. The game-winner marked the second of the season for Bailey. He made the game-winning shot with :05 left to defeat San Jose State earlier in the season at home.
Overall, Santa Clara was 22-for-28 from the free-throw line, while UMBC was only 6-for-9.
UMBC's Will McClurkin scored on a turnaround shot with 10 seconds left to give the Retrievers (5-5) a 58-57 lead. But the Broncos hurried the ball down court, and Bailey got free for the winning shot.
Ross led all scorers with 20 points. He was only 4-for-13 from the field but 9-for-10 from the line. Bailey added 15 points for the Broncos. Ross' 12 three-point attempts were the fourth-most ever for a Bronco in a single game and the second-most in a Cable Car Classic game.
Peter Mulligan led UMBC with 19 points.
Santa Clara advances to Saturday's championship game for the third-straight tournament. The Broncos will face the winner of the Detroit vs. UC Santa Barbara game.
