With 37 seconds remaining on the game clock, Sacramento State forward Derek Lambeth walked off the court to a standing ovation.

In his last game at Hornet Gym, the senior poured in 25 points — 23 in the second half — while guiding the Sac State men’s basketball team to their first-ever Big Sky Tournament berth with a 72-52 win over Montana State.

The Hornets will take the No. 6 and final seed into the tournament, which matches them up with No. 3 seed Montana in the first round next weekend. Had Montana State beaten the Hornets, they would have taken the No. 6 seed and the Hornets would have not qualified.

The Hornets fell behind 29-24 on Saturday after Shea Washington hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from beyond half court to end the first half.

Lambeth scored 14 points over the first eight minutes of the second half to spark the Hornets’ comeback. The Hornets put the seal on their first tournament appearance with a 16-4 run to close the game.

Forward Jimmy White scored 16 points and grabbed 11 boards for the Hornets, while point guard Raashad Hooks had seven points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals.

All four Hornet seniors — Leo Cravey, Lambeth, Hooks and White — were given the starting nod by head coach Jerome Jenkins, and the quartet combined to score 49 points.

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