The Warriors had the ball and the lead, but each time Pioneer was able to pull a rabbit out of its hat and snatch victory away from Westmont. When everything was finally said and done, the Mustangs celebrated a hard-fought 62-61 overtime win in the Blossom Valley Athletic League Mt. Hamilton Division contest.

Which one of the Mustang magicians pulled the biggest rabbit out of the hat? Take your pick.

Was it Mark Bundlie nailing a crucial three-pointer late in regulation to keep the Mustangs within striking distance? Was it Joe Montelongo's clutch three bomb from the right corner with 1.6 seconds left to send the game into overtime? Was it Mike Kaufmann's gutsy drive down the lane to drop in a bucket as he was hammered to bring Pioneer within a point with 18 seconds left? Was it Robbie Nelson's rebound and put back basket after Kaufmann's missed free throw to give Pioneer a one-point advantage with 12 seconds remaining? Was it the defense that prevented the Warriors from scoring on their final possession as time expired? Or was it just a solid team effort that produced a critical win for the Mustangs.

The win improved Pioneer to 6-4 in division play and moved the Mustangs into a second-place tie with Oak Grove. More importantly, with only two games left in regular season play and one of those against undefeated division leader Piedmont Hills, it guaranteed that the Mustangs will finish division play at .500 or better and automatically qualify for a Central Coast Section playoff berth.

Westmont took a 61-58 lead on a three-pointer with 50 seconds left in overtime. It looked like the Warriors had things under control when Michael Johnson stole the ball from Pioneer on its ensuing possession. Johnson streaked down the court but Bundlie scrambled in hot pursuit and was able to knock the ball away and gain control.

Bundlie immediately turned and fired a bullet to the other end of the court where Kaufmann pulled in the pass and went to the hoop, dropping in a bucket and drawing a foul with 18 ticks left. Kaufmann stepped to the line, but his shot bounced off the rim left where Nelson had wormed his way into position to snag the rebound and bank it back in for two and a 62-61 Pioneer lead with only 12 seconds remaining.

After a timeout, Westmont drove down the lane, using a play that had been successfully executed a couple of times earlier in the game. However, this time the Mustangs clogged the lane and the shot bounced off the rim rolling toward midcourt where a wild scramble ensued for the loose ball. Westmont gained control long enough to call its final timeout with only two seconds left.

The Warriors first attempt to inbound the ball was knocked out again by Nelson. The second attempt bounced around harmlessly under the basket as time finally ran out on the Warriors and the Mustangs celebrated.

Near the end of regulation, with less than a minute left, Pioneer was facing a 53-49 deficit. Montelongo grabbed a rebound and flipped the ball outside where Bundlie launched a three-ball that was on the mark and brought Pioneer to within one.

The Warriors answered, dropping in a lay-up at the 15-second mark. As Pioneer worked to get off a final shot, Kaufmann was fouled and Pioneer had to inbound the ball with nine seconds left.

"The play was designed for Bundlie to have the first look," Pioneer coach Joe Berticevich said. "But they had done a good job all night anticipating and denying that shot and Bundlie was swarmed. He rotated the ball to Kaufmann who passed it to Montelongo."

Montelongo was waiting on the right perimeter and without hesitation let fly with a high arching shot that touched nothing but net with 1.6 seconds showing and overtime was on the way.

It might be good for Berticevich to check out what Brent Osborn had for his pre-game meal and make sure he has it again. The big center was everywhere and on fire in the first quarter, leading the Mustangs to a 17-11 bulge out of the blocks. Osborn drained two three-balls, blocked a shot, pulled down two defensive rebounds, grabbed a steal, and poured in 10 points in the quarter.

Another key in the Mustang win was the outstanding defensive effort put on Westmont's sharp shooting guard, Chantz Staden, who was held to six points. Nolan Maggipinto, Bundlie, and Montelongo shared duties on the assignment.

"The game plan was to make him shoot off the dribble and get no easy looks," Berticevich said, "and then play him aggressively when he did not have the ball."

Kaufmann dumped in a game-high 18 points from down low while Bundlie countered with 15 from outside. Osborn finished with 12, including a key bucket in overtime, and Nelson was the fourth Mustang in double figures with 10. Montelongo tossed in the one three-pointer and Maggipinto and Ryan Lacorte added two points each.

Pioneer is scheduled to finish out the regular season this week. The Mustangs were to host Santa Teresa on Tuesday and will travel to Piedmont Hills on Feb. 18, 7:30 p.m.

Leland split a pair of BVAL Santa Teresa Division games last week, which was good enough to insure that the Chargers will finish at least at the .500 level in division play and qualify for CCS. Leland finished the week with a division mark of 7-5, dropping a tough 53-41 loss to Evergreen Valley and then knocking off Prospect 43-39.

Poor free-throw shooting cost the Chargers the Evergreen game. Leland was able to connect on only 4 of 15 attempts from the line in the first half and ended the night putting in only 12 of 29.

"We got them in severe foul trouble in the game," Leland coach Dave Frandsen said. "But we couldn't do anything with it."

Nobody really broke loose for the Chargers offensively and Danny Hamouie was at the top of the scoring list with eight. David Farsai rang up a couple of three-pointers for six points. Kyle Yoshioka and Logan Foos tossed in five each.

The Chargers got back on the winning track later in the week against Prospect with Navdeep Rai having a "tremendous shooting night" as he poured in 14 points, nailing a couple of three-balls. Farsai also bagged a couple of threes and finished with eight points. Hamouie and Foos each dropped in six while Philip Petro added five and Jimi Kogura put in four.