On a night when buckets were hard to come by for both teams, the Lubbock Monterey Plainsmen finished with one more than their Cooper counterparts Friday, scoring the final six points in a hard-fought 40-37 win at Cougar Gym.

Cooper, which needed almost four minutes to score to its first points of the game, held a 22-18 lead at halftime and rallied from a third-quarter deficit to go up 37-34 on a Jordan Willis layup with 3:47 to play. But those would be the Cougars’ final points of the night, allowing the visiting Plainsmen to close the night on a run and escape with a three-point victory.

After a turnover spoiled CHS’ penultimate possession, the Coogs had one final chance when Monterey missed the front end of a one-and-one up 40-37 with just over four seconds remaining in the game. But Jaelyn Rivera’s halfcourt shot at the buzzer banged off the rim and out, eliciting an gasp from those in attendance.