March 10, 2007

POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. - #2 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) lived up to its seed as they advance to their second straight Final Four with a 77-68 win over #10 Indiana Wesleyan in the quarterfinal round of the 16th Annual NAIA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship. The 2007 event is being held at the Keeter Gymnasium on the campus of College of the Ozarks (Mo.).

Indiana Wesleyan stormed out of the gate and took an 10 point lead, 35-25, with 3:19 to go in the first half. MidAmerica Nazarene went on an 18-0 run which carried over to the opening minutes of the second period and seized the lead, 43-35. The Wildcats bounced back and briefly took the lead back, 52-51, but the Pioneers grabbed the lead for good on a Jake Nellor three pointer with 10 minutes left. MidAmerica upped the lead to as much as 12 down the stretch and sealed the win.

After shooting just 42% in the first half, the Pioneers improved to 52% in the second and 47% for the game. Jake Nellor scored a game-high 23 points, including 5-10 from the three point line. Danny Hawkins added 21 points and eight rebounds. Hawkins is averaging 19 points in the three tournament victories. The Pioneers, making their ninth consecutive trip to the national tournament, now have 20 tournament wins.

Leading the tournament field in shooting percentage after their first two games, Indiana Wesleyan shot just 46% from the floor against the Pioneers. Jon Moon, the Wildcat leading scorer was held to just two points after scoring 35 in his first two contests. DeJova Sawyer-Davis led a trio of Indiana Wesleyan players in scoring with 22. Zach Coverstone and Antonio Murrell added 13 and 11 points, respectively. The Wildcats were making their first trip to the NAIA Big Dance and finish the year with a school record 30 wins.

MidAmerica Nazarene advances to the Final Four with a 32-2 overall record and will play either #11 Northwestern (Iowa) or defending champion, College of the Ozarks (Mo.), at 8:00 p.m. on Monday, March 12. The 32-team, single elimination tournament concludes Tuesday, March 13, with the championship game to tip-off at 8:30 pm.