Vermont’s last-second four-point play stuns Yale

TJ Long hit a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer at the buzzer to connect the game then finished a four-point play to give Vermont a sensational 66-65 win in the house over Yale on Saturday night.The Catamounts

inbounded the ball from below their own basket with 0.6 seconds left. Long captured the pass, squared himself up and launched the game-tying shot while being bumped by Yale’s August Mahoney and drawing the nasty call.

“It was a fantastic travel through traffic throughout the court,” Long stated.” [Aaron Deloney] put it on me, and I didn’t have time to take any dribbles. Once I captured it, I just tossed it up there, got lucky with the nasty and banked it in.”

Vermont got the last chance after Mahoney was required an offensive foul as the Bulldogs tried to inbound the ball and go out the last second of the game.

“I’ve never ever experienced anything like that in my profession,” Catamounts coach John Becker said. “Incredible crowd tonight. You could simply feel the crowd wished to get us over the top; we simply couldn’t offer enough plays to get any sort of run and develop any type of lead.

“Credit to Yale; they’re one of the very best mid-major programs in the nation.”

Long was 8-of-16 shooting and 6-for-10 from 3 for a game-high 23 points for the Catamounts (7-2). Shamir Bogues scored 14 points and added 6 rebounds, and Deloney scored 10 points.The Bulldogs(5-4)were led by Bez Mbeng with 18 points. Yale also got 15 points, 16 rebounds and 2 blocks from Danny Wolf.The Associated Press added to this report.