December 30, 1999
Bernard King hit a three-pointer from the top of the key under heavy defensive pressure with no time left as Texas A&M stunned La Salle 70-69 in the consolation game of the Cable Car Classic on Thursday night.
The Aggies (4-6) trailed for all but a minute of the second half, but rallied to break a three-game losing streak.
King scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead Texas A&M. Jerald Brown added 14 points, and Larry Scott had 13.
Rasual Butler scored a career-high 29 points and had 10 rebounds to lead La Salle (6-4). Alexander Pavlovic, 4-of-5 from three-point range, had 16 points.
After the Aggies took a brief lead early in the second half, Pavlovic hit consecutive 3-pointers to spark a 16-4 run that put La Salle up 54-46 with 10:54 remaining to play. The Explorers eventually extended their lead to a game-high 12 points four minutes later before Texas A&M began a rally that closed the gap to 68-67 on a King jumper with 1:41 left.
Neither team scored again until Butler's free throw gave La Salle a two-point edge with 18 seconds left. Butler, who scored 14 of his points in the first half, hit a driving jump shot in the final minute to give La Salle a 32-30 lead at halftime.
The Explorers took advantage of seven Texas A&M turnovers for eight points. La Salle missed all five shots it took from the paint in the half. Carlton Brown added 12 points for Texas A&M.