Talladega Set to Battle Loyola for 2022 NAIA Men's Championship
Talladega Tornadoes (32-5) won a 78-77 overtime thriller over Thomas More Saints (31-5) and will play Loyola Wolfpack (36-1) in the NAIA Championship game.
SAINTS TIE TORNADOES
Thomas More University stormed back into the contest after a 12-2 scoring streak.
The Saints would tie the game at 66 with 46 seconds on the clock. After Baker nailed two free throws, Thomas More equaled the score from the charity line at 68-68 with two seconds left in regulation.
Most of the evening, the Tornadoes led the game, but the Saints forced an extra five minutes of overtime.
Talladega Men's Basketball Team; Credit: Talladega Athletics Dept.
SEMIFINALS OVERTIME CLASH
Tied at 75 with 46 seconds remaining in overtime, the Tornadoes Edwin Louis buried a three-point shot to go up by 3 points.
The Saints' Noah Pack missed a last-second tip-in off of Ryan Batte's missed jump shot, and Camron Reese grabbed the rebound to secure the one-point victory.
Cam Potts' dropped 16 points, and six assists, and Edwin Louis' recorded 15 points off the bench for the Tornadoes. Jervay Green added 14 points, seven rebounds, and four assists against the Saints.
Ryan Batte led the Saints with 33 points, nine rebounds, and two assists. Noah Pack chipped in 18 points, five rebounds, and two assists for Thomas More.
GAME STATS
- The Tornadoes hit 31-of-53 from the floor (58.5 percent), including nine-of-19 from downtown (47.4 percent). The team snagged 28 rebounds and dished out 14 assists.
- The Saints were 40% (10-25) from the field, 33.3% (3-9) from the 3-point line, and 100% (4-4) from the free-throw line in the first half.
HBCU NAIA CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
The HBCU basketball program will clash against Loyola (36-1) in the national championship match at 7:00 PM CT inside Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri, on Tuesday, March 22.
Texas Southern won the NAIA Men's Basketball National Championship in 1977. The Tigers defeated Campbell 71-44 to claim the title.
Talladega advances to the NAIA National Championship for the first time in school history. According to the Talladega Athletics website, the last time an HBCU program made the NAIA Championship was in 1987 when West Virginia State lost 79-77 to Washburn.
HBCU basketball teams have won eleven NAIA Basketball Championships in the tournament's 83-year history.
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