March 12, 2010

POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. - It took 21 games but the first major upset of the tournament happened as 15th-seed University of St. Francis knocked off second-seeded Oregon Tech 75-67 in the second round of the NAIA Division II Men's Basketball National Championships Friday. The 2010 NAIA D-II Men's Basketball National Championship is being played at the Keeter Gymnasium on the campus of College of the Ozarks (Mo.).

The Cougars (25-9) led 40-31 at halftime and opened the second half on a 6-0 run to take their largest lead after a Matt Edmonds tip-in, 46-31. The Hustlin' Owls responded with a 20-5 run to tie the game at 51 at the 12:03 mark on a Justin Parnell jumper. OIT would grab the lead 47 seconds later after a Mike Nieraeth shot from just inside the three-point line, 53-52.

St. Francis tied the score at 58 after a Qadr Owens three-pointer and then regained and stretched its lead to seven points once again. Oregon Tech cut the lead to 70-67 after a pair of Parnell free throws with 1:48 left in the game but that was as close the Owls would get.

"We really had to get after it on defense when they made a huge run to get back into the game, "commented St. Francis coach Jeff Rekeweg. "For the second straight game we kept our composure in spite of some adversity and when it mattered most, we made plays. That's a great team we beat tonight and for us to limit them to 30 percent is a testimony to how hard we played on defense."

After finishing with a tournament single-game high of 43 points in the first round Thursday, DeJovaun Sawyer-Davis of USF was held scoreless for the first 14 minutes of play. The junior ended with 14 for the game. Qadr Owens led the Cougars with 22 points on 6-of-10 from the floor. Kevin Bloom added 10 points.

""We're a family and we thought they would concentrate more on Dey, so other guys had to step up," said Owens. "It wasn't just me, everybody made plays and hit free throws down the stretch when it was on the line."

Oregon Tech (30-5) was paced by Parnell's 25 points. The CCC Player of the Year was 5-for-20 from the field and added a game-high nine rebounds. The Hustlin' Owls were held to a season-low 30% from the floor. Joseph Foster and Nieraeth finished with 19 and nine points, respectively.

The Cougars advance their second national quarterfinals and first since 2000. They will face the winner of #7 Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) and #10 Cornerstone (Mich.) at 6 p.m.