Boys Hoops: Knowles' Shot Lifts Mustangs Past Western Christian

Justin Knowles hit a late shot with just three seconds left in the game to propel Muir to a 55-54 win at Western Christian in the second round of the CIF-Southern Section Division 5AA playoffs Friday night.

But in a scene straight out of Steve Martin's "Planes, Trains & Automobiles," the Mustangs nearly missed Friday's game because of a transportation mixup.

Muir coach Dr. Gamal Smalley discovered the Mustangs didn't have a bus for the 30-mile trip to Western Christian and had to scramble to find an alternative mode of travel. Smalley said the school district provided his team with two vans, and Smalley and an school administrator drove the squad to the game, arriving just one minute before the scheduled 7 p.m. tip-off.

If the Mustangs had arrived more than 10 minutes late, they would have forfeited the game.

Sophomore Taturs Mayberry had 18 points and 14 rebounds, while Jelani Mitchell added 16 points and five boards to lead Muir to the quarterfinals next Tuesday at 7 p.m. The Mustangs will host the winner of Friday's Don Bosco Tech-Fairmont Prep game.