Joseth Dawson said it best: “We refuse to lose.”

For the second season in a row the Sacramento State men’s basketball team has qualified for postseason play, and for the second season in the row it was Montana State who the Hornets ousted in their path to the postseason — this time by a score of 80-74.

Sunday’s win also extended the season for seniors Joel Jones, Tony Champion, Cedric Thompkins, Djibril Diop, Brandon Guyton and Dawson who will have at the very least, one more game in their collegiate careers. Sac State (13-14 overall, 7-7 in Big Sky Conference) won only its second conference road victory of the season and ended the regular season posting Div. I records in both overall and conference victories.

The Hornets’ Nest will now play host for the first time ever to the Big Sky quarterfinals at 7:05 p.m. on Saturday. Sac State will look to knock off Weber State (14-13, 7-7), the defending conference champions.

“Weber State has a great coach (Joe Cravens) and a great tradition of winning in the Big Sky,” Hornets coach Jerome Jenkins said. “We’ll have our work cut out for us on Saturday, but we’re looking forward to the challenge.”

The team has won six of its final nine games, including their last four at home.

“The playoffs is a game of possession and who controls the tempo,” Jameel Pugh said. “On our home court we should be able to maintain momentum and get a victory.”

Sac State fell to a 14-point deficit in the first half, but rallied thanks to Pugh who scored his fourth 3-pointer of the half to give the Hornets their first lead at 36-34 with 56 seconds to go. “Coach asked me to pick up my scoring,” Pugh said. “The defense was laying off me and letting me get my shot off. It was one of those killer instinct modes. I had to put my foot on their necks and make sure they were dead.”

A DaShawn Freeman free throw and a buzzer beating lay-up from Dawson extended the halftime lead to 39-34.

“I was actually sad before the game because I didn’t want it to be the last one,” Jones said. “We got in each other’s faces at halftime because we didn’t want to lose.”

Montana State was led early on by Calvin Ento, who the Hornets struggled to stop in the post. Ento finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds, but Sac State picked up its defensive intensity as the game wore on.

“I was like, forget the offense,” Dawson said. “We need to play defense to create shots.”

The Hornets forced the Bobcats into 18 turnovers. Sac State leads the Big Sky with 8.14 steals per game.

A long Guyton 3-pointer gave Sac State its biggest lead of the game at 68-55, but the Bobcats would not go away. Jason Erickson, the third leading scorer in the Big Sky, scored 10 points in the second half and tied the game at 74-74 with a runner off the glass.

“We were not going to give (the lead) up,” Jones said. “Nobody was negative in the second half.”

Dawson agreed: “We had to stay positive, be patient and not panic.”

Jones then stole the ball on the next Montana State possession and fed Pugh for a lay-up. Pugh finished the game with a career-high 24 points.

Freeman and Guyton hit key free throws in the final 26 seconds to secure the win.

Sac State was in position to take the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye into the tournament, but after a loss to the University of Montana on Feb. 25 the Hornets were playing for the fourth seed.

However, the Hornets aren’t satisfied with merely hosting their first-ever tournament game.

“I’ve been talking about it since the beginning of the year and it hasn’t come true yet,” Dawson said. “We still need to get a conference championship.”

Dawson chipped in 15 points in the win over Montana State and Guyton added 13.

Tickets went on sale yesterday at 10 a.m. and ticket prices for students, faculty and staff are $10 while tickets for the general public will be $15. They can be purchased by calling the box office at 916-278-4323 or at www.tickets.com.

With a win Saturday night Sac State will face either Eastern Washington or Northern Arizona on Tuesday Mar. 9 at Eastern Washington, who will host the tournament after a first place conference finish. The championship game will be played at 6:05 p.m. on Wednesday, Mar. 10 and will be televised on ESPN 2.