After Bomb Scare, Fullerton Loses, 59-57 : Arena Evacuated, Then New Mexico State Wins in Overtime

LAS CRUCES, N.M. —  New Mexico State guard Kenny Travis hit an eight-foot bank shot while almost lying on the floor and then added a free throw as the Aggies hung on for a 59-57 Pacific Coast Athletic Assn. overtime victory over Cal State Fullerton Thursday night at the Pan Am Center.

But that was hardly the big story and just a taste of the excitement.

For Fullerton (3-6 in the conference and 10-11 overall), this was the kind of day that would make any coach consider quitting. George McQuarn, the Titan coach who announced his resignation, effective at the end of the season, on Wednesday, has gone without his injured top scorers for weeks. Here, he was also without starting center Herman Webster, who overslept and missed the bus to the airport.

Then, after the first 11 minutes, his team had scored just five points. And New Mexico State (7-1, 13-4) had a seemingly comfortable 12-point lead at halftime.

Just when it looked as if the Titans would get blown out of the gym, somebody threatened to blow up the gym.

A caller to the Pan Am Center said a bomb had been planned and was set to go off at 9 p.m. MST. The facility was evacuated at halftime, and explosive-sniffing dogs were brought in from nearby Ft. Bliss in Texas. But after a search of more than 1 1/2 hours, nothing was discovered.

As it turned out, the only mad bomber around was Kerry Boagni, Fullerton’s senior forward, who scored a career-high 31 points, including six three-pointers, most of which came well beyond the PCAA’s 19-foot 9-inch arc.

Boagni, who has been mired in a shooting slump for much of the season, started the game with an air ball, and his next shot was a bank attempt that was almost over the glass instead of off the glass.

But he couldn’t miss early in the second half and made his first four shots, three of which were three-pointers. The third cut the Aggies’ lead to 46-45 with 6:58 left in regulation.

The Titans, who trailed by 13 in the first half, got their first lead at 48-47 on two Henry Turner free throws with 5:29 left. They led by three at one point and could have taken the lead with 19 seconds left in regulation when Alexander Hamilton missed the front end of a one-and-one situation.

The game was tied, 51-51, at the end of regulation.

The teams traded one-point leads until Travis, who finished with 18 points, hit his fallaway--make that falldown--jumper over Boagni with 13 seconds left in overtime. Then he made the first free throw after being fouled by Eugene Jackson, who was lying on the floor with his arms wrapped around what had been a loose ball.

No wonder McQuarn wants out of this profession. It was the Titans’ third overtime loss in conference play this season and the second to the Aggies.

“We played hard and put ourselves in a position to win,” an exhausted-looking McQuarn said. “I thought it might be deja vu . . . . We led by 13 at Fullerton, and the second half was theirs. Tonight, they led by 13, and the second half was ours. But we just couldn’t do it in overtime.”

The Titans made just 13 of 28 free throws and only 4 of 8 in overtime. They also shot 40% from the floor. The Aggies, led by Gilbert Wilburn with 19 points, shot 48% from the field and 64% from the line.