March 19, 2008

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Othyus Jeffers scored 21 of his game-high 30 points in the second half to lead Robert Morris College (Ill.) to an 82-73 victory against Carroll College (Mont.) Wednesday in the first round of the 2008 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship. The 32-team event is being held at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City.

Jeffers made 10-of-17 shots from the field and went 10-of-14 from the free throw line as the Eagles posted their fifth consecutive win. Robert Morris, the No. 8 seed, is now 27-3 on the year and will meet either Point Loma Nazarene University (Calif.) or Southern Nazarene University (Okla.) in a tournament second-round contest Friday at 6:15 p.m. CST.

After the teams battled to a 38-38 halftime deadlock, Robert Morris pulled away by shooting 60.7 percent in the second half (17-of-28). The Eagles also committed just three turnovers in the final 20 minutes of play. Robert Morris held a single-digit lead until a streak of seven consecutive points put the Eagles in front 78-67 with 39 seconds remaining. Carroll pulled within 80-73 on a three-pointer by Scott Stockwell with 18 seconds on the clock, but Andre Knox hit two free throws in the closing seconds to seal the win for the Eagles.

In addition to his 30-point scoring outburst, Jeffers contributed a team-high eight rebounds and four steals along with three assists. Andre White chipped in with 16 points for the Eagles.

Chris Kaschmitter paced Carroll with 18 points and six rebounds, while Zach Parks came off the bench to add 14 points. Chad Vaculin collected 13 points and five rebounds for the Fighting Saints. Carroll wraps up its 2007-08 season with a record of 23-9.