KANSAS CITY, Mo. – [Schedule | Bracket] No. 14 seeded Central Baptist (Ark.) continued its impressive run, as they knocked off No. 2 Oklahoma Wesleyan in day one of the 86^th Annual Men’s Basketball National Championship Tournament, inside historic Municipal Auditorium.

First Round Results – Day One | March 21, 2024

No. 1 Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) def. No. 5 The Master’s (Calif.) 69-68 |BOX SCORE

No. 14 Central Baptist (Ark.) def. No. 2 Oklahoma Wesleyan 84-79 | BOX SCORE

No. 1 Grace (Ind.) def. No. 5 Northwestern (Iowa) 82-66 | BOX SCORE

No. 15 Evangel (Mo.) def. No. 11 Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) 77-74 | BOX SCORE

Day Two Matchups | March 22, 2024

No. 1 Langston (Okla.) vs. No. 12 LSU-Shreveport | 1:00 p.m. CT

No. 3 Arizona Christian vs. No. 2 Indiana Wesleyan | 3:00 p.m. CT

No. 1 College of Idaho vs. No. 5 Madonna (Mich.) | 5:00 p.m. CT

No. 2 Cumberlands (Ky.) vs. No. 3 Morningside (Iowa) | 7:00 p.m. CT

News and Notes

Game 1 – No. 1 Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) vs. No. 5 The Master’s (Calif.)

GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS

• This year marks Freed-Hardeman’s ninth NAIA Tournament appearance
• First appearance was in 1998

• The Lions led by as many as 11 in the first half
• Quan Lax led FHU in scoring at the half with 12
• Kaleb Lowery was the leading scorer for The Master’s in the first half, tallying 11 points
• TMU tied the game with 5:47 left in the second half
• The Mustangs took their first lead at the 5:26 mark
• Freed-Hardeman’s Hunter Scurlock finished one rebound short of a double-double, tallying 16 points and nine rebounds
• Three Lions finished in double-figures: Quan Lax (18), Hunter Scurlock (16), and JJ Wheat (10)
• FHU shot 21-64 and 32.8% from the field
• With the win, the Lions improve their NAIA Tournament record to 7-8

GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS

• The Master’s ends its season with an overall record of 24-9.
• The Mustangs are now 9-12 all-time at the National Championship
• Ty Harper led the squad in scoring with 21 points.
• Also in double figures was Kaleb Lowery and Kamrin Oriol, who both scored 14 points.
• The Mustangs shot 32.3-percent from the floor on 21-of-65.
• The Master’s trailed 44-38 at the break and outscored FHU, 30-25 in the second half.

Game 2 – No. 14 Central Baptist (Ark.) vs. No. 2 Oklahoma Wesleyan

GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS

• The Eagles led by as many as seven in the second half
•  This year marks Oklahoma Wesleyan’s 12th NAIA Tournament appearance, and their fourth since the field expanded to 64 teams
• Two Eagles recorded double-doubles: Kaleb Stokes (23 points, 10 rebounds) and Jaden Lietzke (11 points, 11 rebounds)
• D.J. Talton Jr. (19) and Dylan Phillip (17) also finished in double-figures for Oklahoma Wesleyan
• OKWU shot 29-73 (39.7%) from the field.
• OKWU outrebounded the Mustangs, 54-31
• With the loss, Oklahoma Wesleyan drops to 22-10 in NAIA Tournament play

GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS

• CBC is the second-lowest seeded team at the final site, the lowest is No. 15 Evangel (Mo.)
• Central Baptist won its third NAIA National Championship Tournament game on Thursday afternoon and improved to 3-3 all-time at the event
• Central Baptist shot well from the floor, shooting 47.8-percent, on 32-of-67
• Four Mustangs scored in double figures, as Wade Williams led the way with 20
• Sage Borbon scored 19, Deshawn Corprew added 18 and Kyle Harding scored 16
• The Mustangs had 16 assists in the victory, with four coming from Harding
• CBC went on a 19-4 run to end the game and move onto NAIA Quarterfinals

• CBC is now 28-6 on the season and have won six of its last seven games

Game 3 – No. 1 Grace (Ind.) vs. No. 5 Northwestern (Iowa)

GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS

• Northwestern has made 26 total trips to the NAIA National Tournament
• 18 of those trips have been during Head Coach Kris Korver’s tenure.
• Their first appearance was in 1971

• Zach LaFave led Northwestern in scoring heading into the break with 15 points
• Three Red Raiders finished in double figures in scoring: Zach LaFave (21), Dylan Carlson (19), and Kaleb Booth (11)
• The Red Raiders shot 26-of-63 and 41.3% from the field, as well as 6-20 and 30% from the field
• Northwestern was outrebounded by the Grace, 45-34
• Kaleb Booth led the Red Raiders on the boards with eight
• With the win, the Red Raiders drop to 33-24 overall in NAIA Tournament play

GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS

• Grace is the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament and improved to 33-1 on the season
• The Lancers have appeared in the National Championship 13 times and improved to 21-10 all-time at the event
• Grace outrebounded the Red Raiders, 45-34, Elijah Malone led the squad with 11. He finished with a double-double with his 17 points
• GC also had 11 steals on the night, coming from seven different players
• The Lancers have now won nine-straight games dating back to February 14
• Grace collected 22 assists on their 31 made field goals, Carter Stoltzfus led the way with five
• Both teams performed well in the paint, as Grace scored 32 in the paint and Northwest scored 34
• Grace’s bench had a big day with 33 points

Game 4 – No. 15 Evangel (Mo.) vs. No. 11 Lewis-Clark State (Idaho)

GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS

• Head Coach Bert Capel was a member of Evangel’s 2002 NAIA National Championship team as a player.
• Evangel has made 16 total trips to the NAIA National Tournament.
• Stephen Salvi led Evangel in scoring after the first half with 12.
• First appearance was in 1997.
• As the No. 15 seed, the Valor become the lowest seeded team to advance to the quarterfinals since the tournament field was expanded to 64 teams in 2021.
• The Valor shot an impressive 32-65 (49.2%) from the field
• Garrett Davault led Evangel in scoring with 22 points, and Stephen Salvi rounded out the Valor in double-figures with 14.
• Evangel led by as many as 22.
• The Valor scored 23 points off turnovers to the Warriors’ eight.
• With the win, the Valor extend their run and improve to 17-14 in NAIA Tournament play and continue the quest for their second Red Banner.

GAME NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS

• Lewis-Clark State ends its season 24-9
• The Warriors are now 12-17 all-time in the NAIA National Championship Tournament in 18 appearances
• LC had four players in double figures scoring, with a team-high 18 coming from Alton Hamilton
• The Warriors had 15 assists on 24 field goals, with five coming from Sam Stockton.
• LC outscored the Valor, 48-34, in the second half
• The Warriors had 14 second chance points on the night, surrendering just four to Evangel
• Lewis-Clark State had 30 points in the paint on the night