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WATCH: Five-star Tounde Yessoufou ends Sierra Canyon’s season on buzzer beater in California state playoffs

Late-game drama sends Bryce James, Justin Pippen and the Trailblazers home in CIF Open Division regional quarterfinals.

Last-second heroics from five-star junior Tounde Yessoufou sent St. Joseph (Santa Maria) to the regional semifinals of California’s Open Division playoffs with a 69-68 victory over Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth).

Senior Ethan Johnson of Sierra Canyon (26-4) hit a 3-point basket with 5.3 seconds left to give the Trailblazers a 68-67 lead.

With 2.1 seconds remaining and the ball near mid-court, Yessoufou caught the inbound pass near the elbow and drilled the game-winning jumper as time expired.

See footage of the dramatic finish in the video courtesy of the NFHS Network.

Yessoufou is rated as the No. 3 player California in the Class of 2025 by 247Sports with offers from the likes of Arizona, Kansas and UCLA. The native of Benin came up with big shots all night for St. Joseph (31-3) while playing lockdown defense.

The loss closes out the careers of Sierra Canyon seniors Justin Pippen and Arkansas pledge Isaiah Elohim, who had a double-double. Junior Bryce James also had several key shots, including a 4-point play that gave the Trailblazers a 57-55 fourth quarter lead.

St. Joseph represented Northern California in the CIF Open Division championship game last year but fell to Harvard-Westlake (Studio City). This year the Knights were placed on the Southern California side of the bracket. The Knights will take on No. 14 Roosevelt (Eastvale) on Saturday in the regional semifinals.

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