SIOUX FALLS, S.D. No. 2 seed Indiana Tech never trailed but needed an extra period to survive No. 7 seed West Virginia Tech’s furious late comeback Thursday evening in the NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball Championship, presented by Cypress Risk Management. The Warriors outscored the Golden Bears 18-12 in overtime to pull away for an 89-83 thriller.
Trailing 71-69 with less than 10 seconds left in regulation, Michael Scott grabbed an offensive rebound after a missed shot as the Golden Bears recorded its first tie of the game at 71-71 with just a second left and forced overtime.
Later, with the game knotted at 79, three different Indiana Tech players scored on a 6-0 run to earn an 85-79 lead with 30 ticks left in overtime, securing the Warriors’ bid into Friday’s second round.
All five Warriors’ starters scored in double figures, led by Joel Wincowski and Dylan Phair with 22 points each. Nic Williams (17), Scott Schwieterman (11) and Darren Groves (10).
Brandon Shingles paced the Golden Bears with 23 points. Scott posted a double-double of 22 points and pulled down 16 rebounds.
Indiana Tech, now 27-6, moves on to play the winner of No. 3 seed Union (Ky.)/No. 6 Marian (Ind.) on Friday evening, March 9 at 9:15pm.
West Virginia Tech came up just short in its quest for the first D-II championship win and finished their season at 20-12.