NCAA DIVISION II MEN S BASKETBALL 2012 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP THE BANK OF KENTUCKY CENTER HOSTED BY NORTHERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY MARCH 24, 2012 - HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. Western Washington claims national championship Vikings use balanced scoring, coast to 72-65 win over Montevallo HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - With brightly colored confetti cascading around them, Western Washington basketball players raised the championship trophy above their heads after winning the team s first NCAA Division II national title on Saturday at Northern Kentucky University. The Vikings held off a late charge and defeated Montevallo (Ala.), 72-65, in the nationally televised game to cap off a 31-5 season when they also set a team record for most wins. I don t know if it s sunk in all the way yet, but it s a pretty incredible feeling, said Western junior guard Richard Woodworth. At the start of the season, we set a goal that we wanted to go to the national tournament and we wanted to win a national championship. We felt we were capable of doing that. It feels real nice knowing we were able to accomplish that goal. The Vikings, ranked No. 12 in the final Division II national coaches poll, won the West Region title to earn their first trip to the Elite Eight since 2001. Western coach Brad Jackson was battling the flu when the team arrived in Kentucky for the eight-team national finals earlier this week. But he was feeling better than ever after Saturday s championship game. I m just really pleased for these current players, said Jackson, who is in his 27th season as Western s head coach. I m very proud of these guys. They ve worked very hard and really listened. But I m also really thrilled for the other players that have gone before us. We ve had some really, really good teams through the years that haven t made it this far, obviously. The Vikings won the championship game with the same balanced offensive effort that helped them win their first two Elite Eight games. They had five double-figure scorers and shot 54 percent (27 of 50) from the field against Mon- CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
Western Washington wins NCAA Division II national championship - CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 tevallo. Western s scoring leader was junior guard John Allen with 14 points. Woodworth also had an exceptional game, finishing with 10 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Western senior forward Rory Blanche was limited to nine points, seven below his team-leading 16.1 average. I don t know if you could say I led this team, Woodworth said. It was as total team effort. We had five guys score in double figures and our leading scorer wasn t one of those, but we were still able to pull it out. With a small group of Western fans seated behind the team bench for the championship game, there were four ties and 12 lead changes during the first half that ended with the Vikings holding a slim 30-26 lead. Western went on a 9-3 scoring spurt in the final six minutes of the half. Woodworth hit a 3-pointer to get it started and junior forward Paul Jones, who wasn t in the starting lineup, scored twice during that spurt. Most of Montevallo s first-half points were scored by guards Ryan May, Antoine Davis and D.J. Rivera. But they weren t having much success attacking the basket like they did in their team s two previous Elite Eight games. That changed in the opening minutes of the second half as Montevallo s guards scored 10 points in the paint during a run that put the Falcons ahead, 40-35, at the 15:21 mark. But Western responded with a rally of its own. After tying the score at 44-44 on a 3-pointer by Jones, the Vikings went on a 17-5 run and took their biggest lead of the game when Jones hit another trey that made it 61-49 with 6:18 left on the clock. Montevallo coach Danny Young was impressed with the Vikings second-half surge. They had not shot it well the whole tournament and tonight they shot it really well, Young said. It got to be one time there when they were really rolling. Even if you had your hand up it didn t matter, it was going in. Montevallo made a late charge and cut the margin to 70-65 with 28 seconds remaining after Western committed turnovers on four possessions. There were a couple of strange calls at the end, but we were able to stick it out and handle the pressure, Blanche said. After Allen made two free throws with 19 seconds left to give the Vikings a seven-point margin, Montevallo missed its last three field goal attempts. The Falcons made 15 of 31 shots in the second half, but they ended up shooting 37.5 percent (24 of 64) for the game. (Western) made some really tough shots, especially down the stretch right there, and we just couldn t get anything going, Young said. We got a lot of attempts at the basket from five feet away and couldn t put it in the hole. Rivera scored a game-high 20 points for Montevallo and was named the Elite Eight s most valuable player. But the quick guard was 7-of-18 from the field because he had a hard time driving to the basket for most of the game. I thought they did a good job helping (on defense), Rivera said. We just couldn t find the rim today and make shots. The Western team will return home Sunday on a charter flight that s scheduled to land at Bellingham International Airport at 2 p.m. (PDT). Senior forward Zach Henifin is looking forward to stepping off the plane with a championship trophy among the team s carry-on baggage. It feels amazing, but it s going to feel that much better when we get back home with the whole family and celebrate, Henifin said.
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