CHICO  – Brandon Sperling drained a 3-pointer to force overtime, and hit a pair of free throws in the extra period to help Humboldt State claim an exciting 84-81 to send home an enthusiastic Chico State crowd disappointed.

Boxscore

Brandon Sperling scored a career-high 23 points to lead HSU, helping the Jacks improve to 5-0 overall and 1-0 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. Chico State lost for the first time, dropping to 4-1 and 1-1 in league games.

Also coming up big for the Jacks was Brian Morris, who achieved a double-double of 14 points and 15 rebounds. Randy Hunter had 13 points despite being limited by foul trouble, including the first four points of the game on breakaway dunks, adding a 3-pointer to score the Jacks' first seven points.

Bo Henning came off the bench to add 13 points for HSU, and Kyle Baxter had 11 points with nine rebounds in the balanced team effort.

The victory, HSU's 11th straight over their rivals, didn't come easily against the veteran-laden Wildcats. Chico State pulled ahead by as many as 10 points early, and each time the Jacks had to whittle the lead down, Demario Sims found the range to knock down 3-pointers to maintain the distance.

Sims paced the Wildcats with 20 points, shooting 5-of-8 from 3-point range. Also in double figures for the home team were Terrence Pellum, with 16 points, Jay Flores, with 15 and seven assists, Sean Park, with 12 points, and Jay Flores, with 10.

Henning hit a pair of 3-pointers to keep the Jacks offense clicking, and the Wildcats' lead quickly dwindled to three points. Sperling tied the game with a long three of his own, then drove the distance to put HSU ahead, 37-35 with 2:43 left in the half.

By  halftime, the back-and-forth scenario continued until the break arrived, the Jacks scoring last to tie the game at 41-41.

Chico State was the quicker to start in the second half, grabbing momentum and gaining an 8-point lead beore HSU finally scored on a free throw.  But DJ Broome penetrated for a layup that put HSU ahead 51-40 with just under 14  minutes remaiing to give the Jacks another lead.

In the game's waning minutes, Humboldt forged a four-point lead, but an unsuccessful offensive posession gave the Willdcats the ball.  Sims shot a long 3-pointer over the top of the defense, providing Chico State a 72-71 lead with 50 seonds left. But Sperling's clutch 3-pointer from the top of the key sent the game to overtime.

Chico State had a final chance to score as overtime counted down, but the Jacks' Scott Clark tipped a pass and dove for the loose ball, holding on as time expired.

Humboldt State remains on the road for Saturday's game against Cal State Stanislaus. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Turlock.

Humboldt State vs Chico State
12/03/10 7:30 p.m. at Chico, Calif.
At Chico, Calif.
HUMBOLDT STATE 84, CHICO STATE 81
HUMBOLDT STATE (5-0, 1-0 CCAA)
SPERLING, Brandon 6-12 8-8 23; MORRIS, Brian 5-12 3-4 14; HENNING, Bo 5-10
1-3 13; HUNTER, Randy 6-10 0-1 13; BAXTER, Kyle 5-11 0-0 11; BROOME, DJ 1-2
2-2 4; BABCOCK-KRENK, Ellio 1-2 0-0 3; CLARK, Scott 0-2 2-5 2; SPADA, Ernie
0-3 1-2 1; BUCHANAN, Derrick 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-64 17-25 84.
CHICO STATE (4-1, 1-1 CCAA)
SIMS, Damario 6-11 3-3 20; PELLUM, Terence 7-12 2-6 16; FLORES, Jay 4-10 4-4
15; PARK, Sean 3-9 6-6 12; HAWKINS, Roderick 2-7 6-10 10; SHARP, Chris 3-4
0-1 6; GRAVES, Zach 1-1 0-1 2; CONRAD, Jason 0-0 0-0 0; JACKSON, Josh 0-0
0-0 0. Totals 26-54 21-31 81.
Humboldt State................   41   35    8  -   84
Chico State...................   41   35    5  -   81
3-point goals--Humboldt State 9-19 (SPERLING, Brandon 3-4; HENNING, Bo 2-5;
HUNTER, Randy 1-2; BAXTER, Kyle 1-2; MORRIS, Brian 1-2; BABCOCK-KRENK, Ellio
1-1; SPADA, Ernie 0-2; CLARK, Scott 0-1), Chico State 8-20 (SIMS, Damario
5-8; FLORES, Jay 3-8; PARK, Sean 0-1; HAWKINS, Roderick 0-2; SHARP, Chris
0-1). Fouled out--Humboldt State-HUNTER, Randy, Chico State-HAWKINS,
Roderick; FLORES, Jay. Rebounds--Humboldt State 39 (MORRIS, Brian 15), Chico
State 34 (HAWKINS, Roderick 7; PELLUM, Terence 7). Assists--Humboldt State
13 (BAXTER, Kyle 3; SPERLING, Brandon 3; MORRIS, Brian 3), Chico State 15
(FLORES, Jay 7). Total fouls--Humboldt State 21, Chico State 21. Technical
fouls--Humboldt State-None, Chico State-None. A-1752
Brandon Sperlin's 3-pointer with 10 seconds remaining sent the game into OT.
Damario Sims' half court shot at the buzzer in overtime bounced off the back
rim. Chico State hosts Sonoma State Saturday at 7:30.