ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Cardell Butler made four free throws in the final seconds and scored 17 points to lead Utah State to a 57-54 victory over Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo in the Big West Conference Tournament championship Saturday night.
The third-seeded Aggies (24-8), who won the tournament for the third time in four years, will enter the NCAA Tournament with a five-game winning streak.
Butler was fouled by Steve Geary with 15.1 seconds to go and made both ends in the one-and-one situation to give Utah State a 55-52 lead.
Cal Poly's Jason Allen made two free throws to make it 55-54 with 10 seconds left. But Butler responded with two more foul shots with 8.1 seconds to go. Allen's 3-point attempt with two seconds left missed.
Utah State's Desmond Penigar added 13 points and won the tournament's most valuable player award. Spencer Nelson added 11 rebounds and nine points.
Allen led all scorers with 21 points and Varnie Dennis had 19 points for the fourth-seeded Mustangs (16-14).
Butler, Allen and Dennis join Penigar on the all-tournament team, which included Utah State's Mark Brown and UC Irvine's Mike Hood.
AP NEWS
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