ARCATA — Finding ways to lose for most of the game, the Humboldt State Lumberjacks found a way to win in the final minute, escaping with a 65-63 victory over Cal State Stanislaus on Friday.

Trailing 63-62, the Jacks pushed the ball quickly down the floor after Owen Newman rebounded a missed jumper by the Warriors' Michael Dyson, and Lumberjack point guard Zac Tiedeman made the rapid pass to teammate Kevin Atkins. Streaking down the lane, Atkins converted the layin with 12 seconds remaining, and after being fouled on the play added a free throw to provide HSU with its only lead of the game and the win.

The Warriors, who led by as many as 15 points,  had a final chance to pull out the victory. But Benny Koochoie's three-pointer with two seconds remaining misfired and HSU's Ernie Spada grabbed the rebound to seal the win.

Humboldt State improved its record to 18-7 overall, moving to 11-4 in the CCAA and a share of the league lead with CSU San Bernardino. Cal State Stanislaus dropped to 6-14 overall and 2-13 in league.

“(CSU Stanislaus) was better prepared, better coached, and they played harder than us for all but the last five minutes,” HSU head coach Tom Wood said. “Still, I'm proud of our guys for being resilient and finding a way to win when it looked pretty dismal.”

Humboldt State put together a 12-0 run, pulling within one point at 59-58 on a pair of free throws by Tiedeman with 6 minutes, 38 seconds remaining. But the Jacks missed their next five shots while the Warriors missed three more and committed a turnover, keeping the game status quo for three full minutes.

After Dyson made a pair of free throws, HSU's woes continued with two more missed shots. Dyson nailed a jumper for the Warriors, reestablishing their lead at five points with 2:43 on the clock.

Tiedeman answered with a jumper, and following a steal by Atkins the Jacks wnet inside to Owen Newman, who layed the ball in to trim the Warriors' lead to 63-62 with a minute left to play. That set the stage for the final heroics.

Atkins topped the Jacks with 17 points, and both Tiedeman and Newman added 11 for HSU. Newman finished one rebound shy of a double-double, grabbing a team-high nine boards.

Dyson led the Warriors, scoring 19 of his game-high 27 points in the first half. Koochoie had 17 points and Matt Ibewiro topped the Warriors in rebounding with nine boards.

Humboldt State is back in Lumberjack Arena on Saturday, taking on Chico State at 7:30 p.m. The Wildcats fell to Sonoma State, 71-62 in overtime on Friday.