NAIA Men’s Basketball National Championship Day One Recap
Mar 21, 2024
KANSAS CITY, Mo. –No. 14 seeded Central Baptist (Ark.) continued its impressive run, as they knocked off No. 2 Oklahoma Wesleyan in day one of the 86th Annual Men’s Basketball National Championship Tournament, inside historic Municipal Auditorium.
First Round Results – Day Two | March 21, 2024
- No. 1 Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) def. No. 5 The Master’s (Calif.) 69-68
- No. 14 Central Baptist (Ark.) def. No. 2 Oklahoma Wesleyan 84-79
- No. 1 Grace (Ind.) def. No. 5 Northwestern (Iowa) 82-66
- No. 15 Evangel (Mo.) def. No. 11 Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) 77-74
Day Two Matchups | March 22, 2024
- No. 1 Langston (Okla.) vs. No. 12 LSU-Shreveport | 1:00 p.m. CT
- No. 3 Arizona Christian vs. No. 2 Indiana Wesleyan | 3:00 p.m. CT
- No. 1 College of Idaho vs. No. 5 Madonna (Mich.) | 5:00 p.m. CT
- No. 2 Cumberlands (Ky.) vs. No. 3 Morningside (Iowa) | 7:00 p.m. CT
News and Notes
Game 1 – No. 1 Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) vs. No. 5 The Master’s (Calif.)
GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS
This year marks Freed-Hardeman’s ninth NAIA Tournament appearance
First appearance was in 1998
The Lions led by as many as 11 in the first half
Quan Lax led FHU in scoring at the half with 12
Kaleb Lowery was the leading scorer for The Master’s in the first half, tallying 11 points
TMU tied the game with 5:47 left in the second half
The Mustangs took their first lead at the 5:26 mark
Freed-Hardeman’s Hunter Scurlock finished one rebound short of a double-double, tallying 16 points and nine rebounds
Three Lions finished in double-figures: Quan Lax (18), Hunter Scurlock (16), and JJ Wheat (10)
FHU shot 21-64 and 32.8% from the field
With the win, the Lions improve their NAIA Tournament record to 7-8
GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS
The Master’s ends its season with an overall record of 24-9.
The Mustangs are now 9-12 all-time at the National Championship
Ty Harper led the squad in scoring with 21 points.
Also in double figures was Kaleb Lowery and Kamrin Oriol, who both scored 14 points.
The Mustangs shot 32.3-percent from the floor on 21-of-65.
The Master’s trailed 44-38 at the break and outscored FHU, 30-25 in the second half.
Game 2 – No. 14 Central Baptist (Ark.) vs. No. 2 Oklahoma Wesleyan
GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS
The Eagles led by as many as seven in the second half
This year marks Oklahoma Wesleyan’s 12th NAIA Tournament appearance, and their fourth since the field expanded to 64 teams
Two Eagles recorded double-doubles: Kaleb Stokes (23 points, 10 rebounds) and Jaden Lietzke (11 points, 11 rebounds)
D.J. Talton Jr. (19) and Dylan Phillip (17) also finished in double-figures for Oklahoma Wesleyan
OKWU shot 29-73 (39.7%) from the field.
OKWU outrebounded the Mustangs, 54-31
With the loss, Oklahoma Wesleyan drops to 22-10 in NAIA Tournament play
GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS
CBC is the second-lowest seeded team at the final site, the lowest is No. 15 Evangel (Mo.)
Central Baptist won its third NAIA National Championship Tournament game on Thursday afternoon and improved to 3-3 all-time at the event
Central Baptist shot well from the floor, shooting 47.8-percent, on 32-of-67
Four Mustangs scored in double figures, as Wade Williams led the way with 20
Sage Borbon scored 19, Deshawn Corprew added 18 and Kyle Harding scored 16
The Mustangs had 16 assists in the victory, with four coming from Harding
CBC went on a 19-4 run to end the game and move onto NAIA Quarterfinals
CBC is now 28-6 on the season and have won six of its last seven games
Game 3 – No. 1 Grace (Ind.) vs. No. 5 Northwestern (Iowa)
GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS
Northwestern has made 26 total trips to the NAIA National Tournament
18 of those trips have been during Head Coach Kris Korver’s tenure.
Their first appearance was in 1971
Zach LaFave led Northwestern in scoring heading into the break with 15 points
Three Red Raiders finished in double figures in scoring: Zach LaFave (21), Dylan Carlson (19), and Kaleb Booth (11)
The Red Raiders shot 26-of-63 and 41.3% from the field, as well as 6-20 and 30% from the field
Northwestern was outrebounded by the Grace, 45-34
Kaleb Booth led the Red Raiders on the boards with eight
With the win, the Red Raiders drop to 33-24 overall in NAIA Tournament play
GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS
Grace is the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament and improved to 33-1 on the season
The Lancers have appeared in the National Championship 13 times and improved to 21-10 all-time at the event
Grace outrebounded the Red Raiders, 45-34, Elijah Malone led the squad with 11. He finished with a double-double with his 17 points
GC also had 11 steals on the night, coming from seven different players
The Lancers have now won nine-straight games dating back to February 14
Grace collected 22 assists on their 31 made field goals, Carter Stoltzfus led the way with five
Both teams performed well in the paint, as Grace scored 32 in the paint and Northwest scored 34
Grace’s bench had a big day with 33 points
Game 4 – No. 15 Evangel (Mo.) vs. No. 11 Lewis-Clarke State (Idaho)
GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS
Head Coach Bert Capel was a member of Evangel’s 2002 NAIA National Championship team as a player.
Evangel has made 16 total trips to the NAIA National Tournament.
Stephen Salvi led Evangel in scoring after the first half with 12.
First appearance was in 1997.
As the No. 15 seed, the Valor become the lowest seeded team to advance to the quarterfinals since the tournament field was expanded to 64 teams in 2021.
The Valor shot an impressive 32-65 (49.2%) from the field
Garrett Davault led Evangel in scoring with 22 points, and Stephen Salvi rounded out the Valor in double-figures with 14.
Evangel led by as many as 22.
The Valor scored 23 points off turnovers to the Warriors’ eight.
With the win, the Valor extend their run and improve to 17-14 in NAIA Tournament play and continue the quest for their second Red Banner.
GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS
Lewis-Clark State ends its season 24-9
The Warriors are now 12-17 all-time in the NAIA National Championship Tournament in 18 appearances
LC had four players in double figures scoring, with a team-high 18 coming from Alton Hamilton
The Warriors had 15 assists on 24 field goals, with five coming from Sam Stockton.
LC outscored the Valor, 48-34, in the second half
The Warriors had 14 second chance points on the night, surrendering just four to Evangel
Lewis-Clark State had 30 points in the paint on the night