SACRAMENTO -- Zach Chappell's driving layup with 0.5 seconds left delivered Sacramento State a thrilling 76-74 win over Long Beach State on Saturday afternoon at the Nest.

It marked the second straight game Chappell has delivered in the final seconds. The senior guard also drove past defenders for a layup with two seconds left in the Hornets' 87-85 overtime win against Denver on Wednesday. It was his bucket with five second left in regulation in that game that forced overtime. In both games, he scored a game-high 25 points and has been on a tear over the last four games. During that four-game spurt, he has two game winners and is averaging 22.5 points on 52% (30-58) shooting from the field, 48% (12-25) from the 3-point line, and 95% (18-19) from the charity stripe.

The Hornets have now played in four straight games that have come down to the final minutes as nail biting outcomes have become the norm for first-year head coach David Patrick and his team.

The victory was the second in four days for Sacramento State, which improved to 5-5 overall. The Hornets are also 3-0 at home this year, and were finally able to enjoy the comforts of the Nest after beginning the season with seven games away from home in their first eight.

Long Beach State, which won last year's Big West Conference regular season title and qualified for the NIT, dropped to 4-5 with the loss. The two teams were playing each other for the first time since 2006, and Sacramento State improved to 7-5 all-time against LBSU. That includes a perfect 7-0 mark at home. The Hornets and Long Beach were playing each other in the Nest for the first time since 2005.

The Beach never led by more than five points, and Sacramento State opened up an advantage as large as 11 points with 10 minutes to play. However, LBSU kept chipping away and a late 13-4 run had the Beach thinking overtime. A layup from LBSU's Joel Murray capped the run and tied the score at 74-74 with 6.1 seconds remaining, setting up Chappell's heroics. The senior guard took the inbounds pass and went coast to coast, hitting a highly contested layup with the opposite hand (left) to deliver the Hornet victory.

Sacramento State, which led at halftime, 37-30, finished the game shooting 50% (27-54) from the field, 46% (13-28) from the 3-point line and 75% (9-12) from the free throw line. The Hornets' 13 triples were one shy of a season high, as Chappell (4-8), Austin Patterson (4-8) and Hunter Marks (3-5) each had big games from distance.

Long Beach State shot 48% (31-65), but just 3-for-11 from distance and 9-of-16 from the free throw line. The Beach did have 11 steals and forced the Hornets into 19 turnovers. LBSU had 17 points off those turnovers and scored 54 of its 74 points in the paint. Sacramento State led for nearly 30 minutes of game clock, and held an advantage the final 28:35 of the contest.

Chappell led three Hornets in double figures, including Patterson who had 14 points, three rebounds and three steals. Center Callum McRae had his third double-double of the season with 10 points, 10 rebounds and two blocked shots. All 10 of those points came in the second half. Marks had nine points, and Akol Mawein eight points, three assists, zero turnovers and two blocked shots.

Gianni Hunt had two points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and was a +7 in plus/minus. Cameron Wilbon tallied six points, two rebounds, five assists and a blocked shot with 11 seconds left. Quadry Adams rounded out the eight Hornets in the scoring column with two points and two rebounds.

For Long Beach State, Murray led the way with 21 points while Lassina Traore (15) and Marcus Tsohonis (14) also notched double figures.

Next week is Finals Week at Sacramento State, and the Hornets do not play again until a trip to Fresno State on Saturday, Dec. 17, at 4 p.m. After the Fresno State game, the Hornets' final three December games are at Cal State Fullerton (Dec. 21), home against Stanislaus State (Dec. 28), and the Big Sky Conference opener is home vs. Portland State on New Year's Eve.