TJ Long’s buzzer-beating 4-point play propels Vermont to win over Yale

TJ Long hit a miraculous catch-and-shoot 3-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game, then completed a four-point play to give Vermont a 66-65 win over Yale on Saturday night in Burlington, Vt.

After Aaron Deloney’s layup drew the Catamounts within 65-62 with 0.6 seconds to play, Vermont (7-2) was able to draw an offensive foul from Yale on the inbound play to set up one final shot.

Long took the baseline inbound pass from Deloney and threw up a long fallaway 3-pointer that banked into the basket to tie it at 65 apiece with 0.2 seconds left.

It turned out Long was fouled on the play, and he calmly hit the winning free throw to give the Catamounts the stunning one-point victory as Yale’s long heave in the final tick was nowhere near the basket.

“I was supposed to get the ball in the opposite corner,” Long said after the stunning win. “Me and [Deloney] kind of made eye contact there and he kind of threw me open to the wing,” Long said after the game. “It was a great pass [through Austin Mahoney] across the court, and he put it on me. I know I didn’t have time to take a dribble, so once I caught it I kind of threw it up there and got lucky with the foul and banked it in.”

Long, a Rockville Centre native who scored a game-high 23 points, was 8 of 16 from the field, including 6-for-10 from 3-point range for the Catamounts.

Shamir Bogues scored 14 points while finishing 6 of 12 from the floor, and added six rebounds, and Deloney chipped in with 10 points.

Yale (5-4) was led by Bez Mbeng, who recorded 18 points and two steals.

The Bulldogs also got 15 points, 16 rebounds and two blocks from Danny Wolf, and Matt Knowling pitched in with 10 points.