Williams Can’t Win It for Titans This Time : College basketball: Last year’s hero misses the last shot and Fullerton falls to Pacific, 75-73, in overtime.

STOCKTON —  Cal State Fullerton guard Wayne Williams, who beat University of the Pacific with a three-pointer at the buzzer last season, had another chance to be a Titan hero and Tiger tamer Saturday night.

But there were no miracle finishes this time, as Williams’ off-balance, 15-footer from the right baseline missed and Pacific held on for a 75-73 overtime victory before 2,802 in the Spanos Center.

The Titans, who fell to 10-4, 3-2 in the Big West Conference, were trailing, 75-73, but had the ball with 13 seconds left after Tiger forward Randy Morphew missed the front end of a one-and-one. Fullerton was attempting to isolate guard Joe Small, who scored 20 points, and forward Agee Ward, who had 17, on the right side, with Small on the wing and Ward posting up inside.

But Pacific guard Anthony Woods, who held Small to one field goal in the second half, foiled that strategy when he reached around Small’s back and knocked the ball away. Small retrieved it near the top of the key and passed to Williams on the right wing with five seconds left.

As Williams was lining up for a possible three-point attempt, Tiger guard Dell Demps charged in and forced Williams to drive toward the baseline. Williams missed a difficult shot, and the Titans lost their first close game of the season. Fullerton had been 5-0 in games decided by three or fewer points.

“In the past, we’ve been in situations where we’ve played hard and won,” said Williams, who had 11 points, eight assists and three steals in 45 minutes. “We played hard tonight but didn’t make the shots in the end. I guess it was meant to be this way.”

Fullerton had an earlier opportunity to tie it in overtime when Small drove the lane and missed with 24 seconds left. Bruce Bowen, who scored 12 points, including eight to open the second half, also missed two free throws that would have tied the game at 73 with 2:35 left in overtime.

Fullerton played an outstanding first half, which included a 19-6 game-opening run and a 44-41 halftime lead, but fell victim in the second half to Pacific’s 6-foot-10 center Don Lyttle, who burned the Titans from inside and outside, and a tenacious Tiger defense.

Lyttle, despite heavy defensive pressure from Fullerton center Aaron Wilhite, scored 21 points and made two of four three-pointers before fouling out with 2:35 left in overtime. Wilhite couldn’t keep up with Lyttle on the perimeter, and when Lyttle posted up inside, he scored despite being double-teamed several times.

“He’s a big guy and we covered him well,” Williams said. “He just keeps the ball high and shoots over you. We did the best we could.”

Demps added 20 points for Pacific, which shot 51% (30 for 59) in the game. Fullerton shot 58% in the first half--its second-best shooting half of the season--but 20% in the second half (six for 30) and 20% (one for five) in overtime.

Pacific (7-8, 3-3) used several different defenses--man-to-man, a 2-3 zone and a box-and-one--but all had a common theme: Make Small work for his shots.

Woods was usually assigned to Small, and he did an especially good defensive job in the second half. Small scored 14 points in the first half and made five of six field goals. In the second half, however, he scored six points and made one of six shots. It also helped Pacific that Small played all 45 minutes.

“Fatigue was definitely a factor for both clubs,” Fullerton Coach John Sneed said. “Neither team has great depth, and fatigue affected the intensity, the running game and how we played.”

The Titans came out strong and looked as if they might blow out the Tigers early. Williams played his best half of the season in the first half, scoring nine points and passing out eight assists.

Four of those assists came in the first eight minutes, as Williams led a fast break that was beating the Tigers down the court. A 33% shooter, Williams made four of five shots in the half and scored seven consecutive Fullerton points during one stretch to keep the Titans ahead, 33-23.

But Pacific, which came out cold from the outside, began pushing the ball inside and pulled to within three, 44-41, by halftime.

“We got the big lead and I think we relaxed a bit,” Williams said. “That’s how they got back in the game. I felt we’d be up by 15 or 16 at halftime, but the momentum shifted.”

The Titans were still able to maintain the lead until the 11:01 mark of the second half, when Demps scored from inside, was fouled and converted the three-point play to make it 58-58.

Fullerton held a three-point lead (69-66) with 3:15 left and a two-point lead (71-69) with 1:14 left, but Demps’ two free throws tied it at 71 with 54 seconds remaining.

On its last possession in regulation, Bowen slipped and lost the ball on a drive with 30 seconds left. The Tigers played for one shot, with Demps dribbling at the top of the key, but Small tipped the ball away with five seconds left. Demps passed to Woods, who couldn’t get his three-point attempt off before the buzzer.

Pacific freshman Glenn Griffin scored his points on a tip-in in overtime, and Randy Lavender added a jumper to account for the Tigers’ four overtime points. Ward was the only Titan to score in overtime.