Watch Tyler Les drain his game-tying three

At the time, his team was trailing by three with three seconds left. After inbounding the ball to his teammate, Josh Fox, Tyler Les ran towards the middle of the court on a give-and-go to create a clean look at the basket. To say he took his buzzer-beating shot from NBA distance is an understatement; standing closer to the half-court line than the three-point arc, the Aggies' long-range sharpshooter connected and forced an additional five minutes of action.

Once play resumed, the host Aggies started the extra session by scoring nine unanswered, and owned the entire overtime period to record a 77-70 victory over Utah State.

In its first opportunity to host USU, a nationally respected and recognized program, UC Davis' result caught the attention of college basketball pundits nationwide and provided men's basketball fans the perfect snapshot of this year's roster: battle-tested, tough, poised, resilient, confident, and mature.

Its triumph over Utah State was the first of three against Mountain West foes; UC Davis finished a perfect 3-for-3 once the team departed Air Force with a six-point win less than a month later. Sandwiched between those wins was another against San José State, but it was that victory against the Aggies that provided everyone with a glimpse of how special this season could be.

The timing of UC Davis' final Mountain West victory, at Air Force, made that result event sweeter. As most people across the country, and everyone in the Big West Conference can attest, UC Davis is an academically rigorous university that expects it student-athletes to succeed at a similar level to the school's student body.

Men's basketball entered Clune Arena and competed at elevation during the last day of the fall quarter's finals week. Three hours and one victory later, this year's roster accomplished something for the first time since the 2008-09 season - winning its first post-finals game.

On a side note, that triumph took place inside one of the most challenging, and demanding physical environments. Click here to see how Air Force welcomes guests to Clune Arena; keep in mind that this sign is located directly next to the entrance of the visitor's locker room.

For the first time since the 2000-01 season, the Aggies posted a perfect record in the month of November by winning all five of its games played - including that matchup versus Utah State. Also taking place within that month was a challenging cross-country road trip that forced men's basketball to play three games, in as many time zones, within a week-long timespan.

With its win against San José State on Dec. 3, UC Davis sported its first 6-0 start in 102 years and its first as a NCAA-recognized athletics program. During the 1912-13 season, the last time the Aggies enjoyed this successful a start to their season, the school was known as University Farm and competed against local high school and club teams.

To add a bit of context, UC Davis' last 6-0 start took place before the first transatlantic flight, television was invented and two world wars.

As the Aggies continued to collect victories as its non-conference slate progressed, experts, and coaches, from across the nation understood that something special was taking place at UC Davis. On Nov. 24, men's hoops made its first-ever appearance on CollegeInsider.com's Mid-Major Top 25 Poll when the team received one vote. Nearly a month later, the program earned its first national ranking when the media outlet ranked UC Davis No. 25 in the nation on its Dec. 22 poll.

When the Aggies returned their locker room with a win in its final regular season non-conference game, on Jan. 3, this year's team set itself up to face it first league foe four days later with a 10-3 record - a new D-I program high.

Later that week, CSUN and Long Beach State visited campus and soon found out what many fans, coaches and pundits already realized: This year's UC Davis team was like no other, and possessed a realistic chance to win a Big West Conference championship.

Halfway through its season, UC Davis earned wins in 12 of its first 15 games to set a new Div. I school record, showed the world what Aggie Pride was all about when ESPNU returned the Pavilion for the third time in as many seasons, was the lone Big West team to possess a national ranking and continued to turn doubters, into believers, one game at a time.

Outside of that game-tying three Les canned against the Aggies that November night, the senior guard drained another 64 before his college career concluded. On paper, Les' three tied the game and helped UC Davis collect the first of its three overtime wins (in as many opportunities).

However, by connecting from another area code in the waning moments of regulation against Utah State, one could argue that of his 65 treys, none may have been bigger, or more meaningful to his team and its legacy-defining season.

This is the first of four articles that will appear on UCDavisAggies.com throughout the next two weeks that will highlight men's basketball's historic season. Thursday's post will focus on the team's numerous nationally televised appearances, and how those opportunities helped strengthen UC Davis' reputation nationwide.