Cerritos College Athletics - 2008-09 Men's Basketball News: Missed timeout call costs Falcons chance at win

With time running out and a chance to win their 2nd Round Southern California Regional Playoff game, Cerritos College men's basketball coach Russ May was feverishly calling for his team to get a timeout. Unfortunately, none of the three officials heard May's plea and Mt. San Antonio College was able to secure a loose ball, which set off the first-year coach. With the #5-seeded Mounties clinging to a 66-65 lead, May was called for a technical foul with nine seconds remaining. After one of the two free throws was converted, the Falcons quickly fouled Antonio Biglow with four seconds left. He missed both free throws and freshman forward Willie Edwards (Moreno Valley HS) saw his long three-pointer rattle in and out of the basket at the buzzer, which ended the team's season with a 67-65 loss. The #12-seeded Falcons concluded their year with an 18-11 record.

Cerritos was looking to pull off the upset and advance to the 3rd Round and was in position to do so until the ill-fated timeout call fell on deaf ears. During the attempted timeout call, the ball was stripped loose and when the Mounties came up with the loose ball, May let his feelings known about the missed opportunity to win the game. It was his first technical foul of the season.

Along the way, the Falcons received 20 points from sophomore guard Sean Chennault (Ben Franklin, PA HS), with 16 of them coming in the second half, while sophomore forward Marcellus Jackson (Independence HS) and sophomore guard Jeremy Pope (Mayfair HS) each added 11 points. Freshman guard Greg Howell (Artesia HS) accounted for 10 points in the loss.