Box Score
The Bruins punched their ticket to the NCCAA DII South Region Championship as the team defeated #5 seeded Pensacola Christian College 89-81 in the semifinal on Friday night in Pensacola, Florida. The win marks the 12th in a row for the Bruins an the second straight season the team will compete for the region crown.
"We had a lot of adversity happening behind the scenes today," Bruins Head Coach Burton Uwarow said. "That's good for us though because we need adversity to keep from becoming complacent. We had some key players in foul trouble throughout this game but we were still tough enough to win."
The Bruins overcame a tough environment as the Eagles fans were out in full voice to pack the Arlin R. Horton Sports Center Arena with over 1,500 fans in attendance. The Bruins also had another difficulty to start the game as the team discovered their uniforms had been misplaced earlier in the day. Dressed in their practice uniforms, the Bruins took the court to battle the Eagles.
From the opening tip, the energy of the hometown crowd propelled the Eagles to an early 10-5 lead. The Bruins were able to stay within striking distance as the team was able to make it to the free throw line and convert. Justin Matthews knocked down a three to bring the Bruins within a basket as they trailed 13-10. With the basket, Matthews made history in becoming just the 4th player in program history to pass 1,000 career points.
The Eagles continued to maintain the lead despite several short runs by the Bruins. Defensively, the Bruins got a big spark from Chris Gray as the forward limited Eagles' leading scorer Dakota Pratt to just four points in the game. "Chris was big for us," Coach Uwarow said. "He did a great job defensively in locking down on their best player and limiting his opportunities." Still, the Bruins continued to trail as the team went into the break down 39-38.
In the second half, the Bruins took their first lead of the game as Chris Gray banked home a layup to give the Bruins a 40-39 lead. Nate Ellenwood followed that up with nine straight points for BJU but the Eagles answered with each possession as the Bruins held a 51-48 lead.
With under 10 minutes to play, the Bruins used a 12-1 run to stretch their lead to 62-51. The Bruins began to work the ball inside and took advantage of their opportunities as Jayson Barnhart and Quez Fisher were able to make shots in and around the rim. The inside presence opened the outside for Justin Matthews and Dustin Killough as the pair of seniors both finished with double digit points on the night.
Nate Ellenwood knocked down his third three pointer of the game for the Bruins with just over three minutes to play to give the team a 72-60 lead. The Eagles were able to cut the deficit to single digits, but the Bruins clutch free throw shooting down the stretch allowed the team to hold on for a 89-81 victory.
"I have the utmost respect for PCC," Bruins Head Coach Burton Uwarow said. "They played a great game. We just had a lot of key performers on our team that stepped up for us. We know tomorrow will be a tough and competitive game and we need to be ready for it."
Nate Ellenwood led the Bruins with 29 points and 10 rebounds on the day while also dishing out five assists. Justin Matthews scored 18 points while Dustin Killough finished with 17. Jayson Barnhart also had a strong performance for the team with 13 points and 9 rebounds. On the day, the Bruins shot 42% from the field and had an impressive 76% free throw shooting performance which was crucial in the win.
The team will face #3 Trinity College in the region championship in a rematch of the 2017 region title game. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m.
