Story by Eric Montgomery, NAIA Media Coordinator

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – (Box Score) No. 3-seeded Life (Ga.) ended the unbeaten run of No. 1-seeded LSU Alexandria (La.) and claimed a 65-63 win, Monday evening in the semifinal round of the 2017 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men’s Basketball National Championship at Municipal Auditorium. The Eagles advance to the championship game and will play the winner of William Penn (Iowa) and Texas Wesleyan on Tuesday, March 21 at 7:00 p.m., CST.

Life (26-10) advanced to the national championship game for the first time since 2000 when the Eagles won the second of back-to-back titles. The Eagles won their third-straight two-point game in the national championship and have won the four games by an average of 3.8 points.

“We had one major concern and it was a legitimate concern and that was we did not know how we were going to get defensive rebounds against them,” said Life head coach Keith Adkins. “If you were to tell me the numbers we had, I would not have thought we would have much of a prayer. I just told my guys after this win that it says a lot about your character and resolve when you can beat good teams when you are not playing well and I don’t think we played that well.”

LSU Alexandria had the early advantage in a first half dominated by the two defenses. Neither team shot above 33.3 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes, but the Generals posted a 30-15 advantage on the glass that included a 10-2 edge in offensive rebounds.

Life held a one-point advantage at the 12:22 mark of the first half before LSU Alexandria surged to its biggest lead of the game. Back-to-back three-pointers by Hayward Register and Brandon Ellis sparked a 17-6 run that Hayward finished off with another long range connection, giving the Generals a 28-18 lead at the 5:40 mark. Life scored the final seven points of the half, however, and trailed by just three at intermission.

The Eagles evened the score early on in the second half and the teams traded the lead eight times prior to the final deadlock at 53-53 with 6:04 to play. Zach Landis hit his only three-pointer of the game to push Life in front at the 4:41 mark, a lead the Eagles would never surrender.

A runner in the lane by Landis with 1:04 to play gave the Eagles a 64-59 lead with 1:06 to play, but the Generals trimmed the deficit to one after a short jumper by Gilbert Talbot and two free throws by Jordin Williams. The Eagles fouled Landis with 14 seconds left, where he hit 1 of 2 at the line. Williams got one shot attempt with seven seconds to play, but his shot was blocked out of bounds. The ensuing inbounds pass was stolen away from Moss and the final seconds ticked off the clock.

“I know it didn’t end like we wanted it to, but it was an unbelievable season,” said LSU Alexandria head coach Larry Cordaro. “We took another step forward, but fell to a team that’s already won three national championships and is led by a coach that has been doing this probably since I was in junior high. These guys have a lot to be proud of and nothing to hang their heads about.”

Mike Miller led the way for Life with 17 points, hitting 5 of 9 from three-point range to go along with three assists. Dalarian Williams tallied 14 points and eight rebounds, Jonathan Beausejour recorded 13 points and seven rebounds, and Landis tacked on 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

Register scored a team-leading 15 points for the Generals to go along with four assists. Talbot finished with 14 points and nine rebounds, while Brian Sylvester added 10 points, nine rebounds and two blocked shots.

LSU Alexandria concluded its season with a record of 34-1.

Game Notes:

Life – The Eagles are making their 16th appearance at the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championships, including their seventh in the last nine years...Life is now 26-12 all-time in the national championship...The Eagles improved to 9-5 this season in games decided by five points or less and overtime …With the win, the Eagles advance to the finals for the first time since 2000, when Life won the most recent of its three national championships...Life's Keith Adkins is the first head coach in the tournament's 80-year history to make consecutive NAIA Fab Four appearances with different teams... He directed Campbellsville (Ky.) to the Fab Four in 2016… It's his third overall appearance, also coaching Campbellsville in 2008...Life is one of four Mid-South Conference teams in this season’s national championship and one of three - along with Georgetown (Ky.) and Pikeville (Ky.) - to advance to at least the second round...Mid-South Conference teams are now 7-3 in the 2017 Buffalo Funds NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship... The 11 made 3-pointers was tied for the third-most by a team in this year’s event...The five 3-pointers made by Mike Miller is tied for the third-most by an individual in a game in the national championship...The Eagles won the game despite being outrebounded, 50-29...Life’s 4.33 assist-to-turnover ratio (13 assists to 3 turnovers) was the best by a team in a single game thus far in the national championship.

LSU Alexandria – The Generals were making their third appearance all-time in the national championship and its third-straight...LSU Alexandria has qualified for the national tournament in all three seasons of the program's existence...The Generals were trying to make it to the championship game for the first time after losing to Carroll (Mont.) in the second round in 2016 and to Cumberlands (Ky.) in the 2015 opening round 2015...LSU Alexandria is now 4-3 all-time in the national championship...The Generals were the first team since Columbia (Mo.) in 2013 to advance to the national tournament with an undefeated record... Columbia advanced to the quarterfinals that year before being eliminated by LSU Shreveport...LSU Alexandria received an automatic bid to this season’s championship by winning the Red River Athletic Conference regular-season championship with an 18-0 record...The Generals are one of four Red River Athletic Conference teams in this year’s championship, along with LSU Shreveport, Langston (Okla.) and Wiley (Tex.)...Red River Athletic Conference teams finished with a record of 5-4...LSU Alexandria is 15-1 against teams that were part of the 32-team field...Head coach Larry Cordaro is the brother of Omaha Storm Chasers President/General Manager Martie Cordaro…The Storm Chasers are the Class AAA affiliate of the Kansas City Royals...It was LSU Alexandria's fifth game this season decided by four points or less...The 63 points scored was a tournament-low for the Generals by 21 points.

General Notes: - Life (Ga.) opened the championship with the very first game on Wednesday with a win over No. 6 Martin Methodist (Tenn.), 80-78 and it will conclude the event by playing in the national championship game … LSU Alexandria (La.) came into the championship as the No. 1 program in the Coaches’ Poll … Only William Penn (Iowa) remains as a No. 1 seed in the field … The previous seven appearances for Life ended in the first round dating back to 2001 … If William Penn wins the second semifinal, Life will have played three of the No. 1 seeds in the tournament this week.