Late Night Snacks: Mountain West battles highlighted Wednesday’s CBB action

Games of the Day: 

St. Mary’s 70, BYU 69

The college basketball gods made us wait until the conclusion of the night to get the evening’s best ending. After Tyler Haws hit a fall-away floater in the lane to put BYU ahead by two with five seconds to go, Saint Mary’s guard Matthew Dellavedova threw up a half-court shot and sank it at the buzzer to give the Gaels a shocking road victory in the WCC.

Maryland 51, No. 14 NC State 50

Before Dellavedova’s huge shot to beat BYU, this looked like the undisputed Game of the Night. Pe’Shon Howard missed a floater falling away from the basket, but big man Alex Len was there for the putback with 0.9 seconds left. Maryland fans stormed the floor in celebration and the Terrapins now have a signature win on their resume over a Top 25 team.

Also of Note: Iowa State 69, West Virginia 67

Important Outcomes 

1. UNLV 82, No. 15 San Diego State 75

In the battle for Mountain West supremacy, UNLV coach Dave Rice went with a smaller lineup down the stretch to counter San Diego State and it worked out perfectly. Guard Anthony Marshall carried the Rebels with 20 points and UNLV proves how versatile a lineup it can put on the floor at any one time.

2. No. 19 New Mexico 79, Boise State 74 (OT)

Boise State is proving to be a legitimate threat in the Mountain West, despite ultimately falling in overtime to New Mexico. For the Lobos, the win Wednesday was done without much production from center Alex Kirk until the final minutes, which should be a good sign of versatility moving forward.

3. Towson 69, Delaware 66

Pat Skerry and the Towson Tigers went 1-31 overall last season. With a win Wednesday, Towson pulled to an even 9-9 and tied for second in the CAA with a 4-1 mark in the conference.

Starred

1. Matthew Dellavedova, Saint Mary’s (18 points, 8 assists, half-court buzzer-beater to beat BYU)

See above for the link to Dellavedova’s heroics Wednesday, but it is worth noting that he went head-to-head with BYU’s Tyler Haws, even down to the final sequence of possessions. He turned in a big performance in a big spot for the Gaels.

2. Jamaal Franklin, San Diego State (27 points, 7 rebounds)

Despite the loss, Franklin had another All-Conference outing vs. UNLV. He was San Diego State’s No. 1 scoring option and for good reason. Even when defenders were cutting off his drive to the basket, he found a way to power through and score.

3. Majok Majok, Ball State (26 points, 13 rebounds)

The double-double man does it again for Ball State, though in a loss.

Also of Note: Derrick Marks, Boise State (27 points, 6 rebounds)

Struggled

1. Tony Watson II, Buffalo (5 points, 1-of-12 FG)

Javon McCrea was able to carry the offensive load for Buffalo Wednesday night with his 33 points, compensating for others who struggled from the field, including Watson II. Buffalo fell to Kent State, 80-68.

2. Charles Mann, Georgia (3 points, 1-of-4 FG, 6 turnovers)

The Bulldogs turned the ball over 18 times in their double-digit loss to Missouri Wednesday night. Mann couldn’t get it going from the field and contributed to that turnover number with six of his own.

3. Scottie Haralson, Tulsa (0 points, 0-of-8 FG)

Tulsa got the win over UTEP Wednesday night, 45-42, but it wasn’t pretty. The Golden Hurricane shot 40 percent from the floor and turned the ball over 16 times.

Daniel Martin is a writer and editor at JohnnyJungle.com, covering St. John’s. You can find him on Twitter:@DanielJMartin_