Presented By Atomic Speedway
The Shawnee State University Bears made school history Tuesday, winning the NAIA National Championship 74-68 over Lewis-Clark State in their first trip to the (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) Championship Game, held in Kansas City, Missouri.
The Bears were in control most of the game, building a 40-30 halftime lead and led by as many as 12 early in the second half. But late in the game, SSU held-off a rally by Lewis-Clark State, who cut the deficit to 65-62 with 1:37 left in the game.
SSU took care of their business with key free throws and clutch field goals to keep the Warriors at-bay to win the national championship.
Shawnee State had three players in double figures- led by James Jones’ double-double of 27 points and 10 rebounds, followed by Amier Gilmore with 14 and 10 from Miles Thomas. The Bears shot 25/60 from the field- including 11/28 from the arc for a total of 42%. They added 13/18 from the free throw line and grabbed a whopping 52 rebounds, which helped to overcome 17 turnovers.
Lewis-Clark State was led by Damek Mitchell’s 21 points. Two other Warriors were in double figures. LCS shot 24/69- including 10/32 from the arc for 35%. They added 10/15 at the charity stripe and grabbed 24 rebounds. They also committed only 5 turnovers.
After a (4-2) start to their season, the Shawnee State Bears finished on a 27 game winning streak that took them to (31-2) and the NAIA Championship, handing #3 ranked Lewis-Clark State only their second loss of the season (22-2).
