The Bruins looked to be on their way to their third straight NCCAA DII South Region Championship as the team went into halftime up by seven. Instead, their championship hopes were dashed as the Trinity Baptist College Eagles came back in the second half to win the region title 66-55 on Saturday afternoon in Kissimmee, Florida.
Despite the loss, the Bruins will receive an at-large bid to compete in the tournament as the host team. The Bruins were ranked in the top-five of division II for much of the season and finished the year with a 7-1 region record. Still, the loss was tough to swallow for the Bruins as they left the court in Florida.
"This one is on me," Bruins Head Coach Burton Uwarow said. "Our guys played hard and I just didn't do enough to prepare them for this game. We'll hope to rebound as we enter the national tournament in a few weeks."
The Bruins and Eagles had met twice in the regular season with the teams splitting those games by winning each on their home court. The Bruins came into the championship as the #2 seed in the tournament, having defeated #3 Johnson University (FL) in the semifinal. The Eagles were ranked #1 in the tournament and were almost bounced in the semifinal round as they came back to defeat #4 seeded Pensacola Christian College in overtime. Both teams took the court as the region championship was set to begin.
In the opening minutes, the Bruins relied on the scoring touch of their captain Jayson Barnhart while the Eagles kept pace as the score remained close early on. Near the midway point of the half, Barnhart scored four straight baskets for the Bruins as the team pulled ahead 18-10. The Eagles struggled to contain Barnhart but didn't let the Bruins slip away as forwards Chandler Rivers and Marcus Dixon battled in the paint for points.
With the first half drawing to a close, the Bruins were able to get a boost as Jon Allen scored and Daniel Fuller hit a three to put the Bruins up 30-21. Marcus Dixon scored just before time expired to cut into the lead, but the Bruins led 30-23 going into the half.
As the teams came out for second half action, the Bruins looked to put away the Eagles and capture their third-straight region crown. Instead, the Eagles used their halftime adjustments to pressure the Bruins, forcing BJU to commit several turnovers early on. The defensive pressure threw the Bruins out of their rhythm and as a result, the Eagles went on a 21-6 run to build a double-digit lead over the Bruins.
After a timeout, the Bruins looked to stop the bleeding but the team couldn't get their offensive rhythm back as shots continued to miss. With just minutes to play, Cam McKennedy scored in the lane to cut the lead to 51-45. The Eagles responded with another 6-0 run and the Bruins couldn't recover as the Eagles went on to win the game 66-55.
Despite scoring 12 points in the first half, Bruins captain Jayson Barnhart was limited by the Eagles in the second half as he scored only five to finish the game with 17 points. Jon Allen was the only other Bruin in double figures as he finished with 11 points. The Bruins committed 23 turnovers in the game which hurt the team's ability to get into a consistent rhythm on offense.
With the loss, the Bruins finish runner-up in the NCCAA DII South Region. The national tournament will begin on March 7 with eight teams from around the country coming to Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. Final seeding for the tournament will be determined over the weekend by the NCCAA championship committee.
