GAME NOTES: The top-seeded Snow College men's basketball team will begin the NJCAA National Tournament and take on the 17-seeded Connors State College Monday at 11:00 a.m. MDT at the Hutchinson Sports Arena in Hutchinson, Kansas.
 
The Badgers enter the NJCAA National Tournament for just the fourth time ever after winning their first West District Championship in program history last Saturday. Snow College defeated No. 17 Eastern Arizona College 94-85 to clinch a berth into the tournament.
 
After finishing the regular season with a 32-1 overall record – the best record in the nation – and a 25-game winning streak, the Badgers were selected as the number one overall seed in the tournament and are one of eight teams to receive a bye into the second round.
 
Isaac Finlinson scored 16 points in the Badgers' victory in the West District Championship. His final point was the 1,000^th he has scored in his career, making him just the fifth member in program history to join the 1,000-point club.
 
The Badgers enter the tournament in the top five in both overall field-goal percentage and 3-point percentage. Snow College shoots 51.8 percent from the field, tied for third overall in the country and second in the tournament to Daytona State College.
 
Additionally, the Badgers enter the tournament as the best 3-point shooting team in the field after shooting at a 39.1 percent clip in the regular season, which was good for fifth in the nation.
 
Following the conclusion of the regular season, four members of the team were given All-Region 18 honors led by Finlinson, who was named the Conference Player of the Year. Isaac Garrett was named to the All-Conference First team while Mark Brown Jr. and Chance Trujillo were named to the All-Conference Second Team.
 
Snow College has never faced Connors State before Monday's meeting. The Cowboys own a 29-3 overall record and a 14-2 record within the Oklahoma Collegiate Athletic Conference this season. They enter Monday's second-round matchups winners of 11 in a row including an 80-75 victory over John A. Logan College in the first round of the tournament.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Before most Americans had even defrosted their Thanksgiving turkey, the Snow College men's basketball team was starting the best winning streak in program history. Fast forward nearly three months, and the number one team in the nation finds itself the winner of 25 games in a row and the West District Champions for the first time ever.
 
No. 1 Snow College defeated Region I Champion, No. 17 Eastern Arizona College 94-85 Saturday in Ephraim to punch its ticket to the NJCAA National Tournament in Hutchinson, Kansas for the fourth time in program history.
 
The Badgers entered what would be their final home game of the season Saturday after capturing the Region 18 Championship last weekend. Snow College, virtually a lock for the National Tournament, needed a victory against the Gila Monsters in the West District Championship to officially land its spot in the bracket.
 
An emphatic two-handed block from Isaac Garrett (So./Pleasant Grove, Utah/Pleasant Grove HS) on EAC's first possession led to a fastbreak layup for Isaac Finlinson (So./St. George, Utah/Dixie HS), and the tone was set for the rest of the evening.
 
Finlinson, the Badgers leading scorer averaging just over 19 points a game and the Scenic West Athletic Conference Player of the Year, needed 16 points entering play Saturday to become just the fifth member of the 1,000-point club at Snow College. His pursuit of rarified air was off to a good start in his final game inside the Horne Activity Center.
 
Snow College used the momentum to jump out to a 10-4 lead three minutes into action. EAC brought it back within one point minutes later before a layup from Sean Felts (Fr./Draper, Utah/Crimson Cliffs, HS) preceded Chance Trujillo (Fr./Kaysville, Utah/Davis HS) sinking all three free throws after being fouled on an attempt from beyond the arc, and the Badgers led 18-12 with 12:23 left in the first half.
 
Five straight points from the Gila Monsters nearly erased the lead, but a jumper from Garrett sparked a 9-0 run from the Badgers and they led by 10 midway through the opening stanza. They were able to extend the lead out to as many as 15 before EAC made a push in the final few minutes. The Gila Monsters scored the final six points of the half to trim the Badgers' lead to 45-38 heading into intermission.
 
Snow College carried the momentum into the second half and pushed the lead out to 17 on a jumper from Felts. The Gila Monsters' high-pressure defense allowed them to use a 9-1 run to get back within single digits with under 12 to play.
 
Mark Brown Jr. (So./South Phoenix, Arizona/Bella Vista Prep) made his mark on the game as a 3-pointer followed by a steal and a fastbreak layup lifted the Horne Activity Center to its feet as the Badgers went up by 14 with 8:27 remaining.
 
Finlinson scored his 10^th point at the 6:45 mark needing six more points to reach 1,000. His jumper helped spark a 9-2 run to put Snow College up 83-66 with three and a half left in the game.
 
EAC made one final push to get back within 11 with 2:09 on the game clock. Finlinson made a pair of layups and a free throw, and Coleman Ford (So./Provo, Utah/Timpview HS) sank two free throws and Snow College held a 91-76 lead with under a minute to play.
 
With the game in hand, it appeared Finlinson would fall one point short of reaching the milestone at home, but EAC elected to foul with 10 seconds left to send Finlinson to the free-throw line. He made the second of two free throws to become only the fifth member of the 1,000-point club in program history.
 
When the final buzzer sounded, Snow College had punched its ticket with a 94-85 victory. The win was the first time the Badgers had won the district championship and just the fourth time ever they have made it to the NJCAA National tournament.
 
Finlinson led six Badgers in double figures as he finished with 16 points. He also had six rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block. Garrett recorded his fifth double-double of the season with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Kyle Lemke (Fr./St. George, Utah/Dixie HS) and Felts both had 13 points and four rebounds, while Trujillo had 11 points and six boards and McCaden Adams (Fr./Pleasant Grove, Utah/Pleasant Grove HS) had 10 points to aid in the win.
 
UP NEXT: With a win, the Badgers would move into the quarterfinals. That matchup would take place Wednesday at 11:00 p.m. MDT. Snow College could take on either the eight-seeded Daytona State College, the nine-seeded Barton College, or the 24-seeded Brunswick College. For video streaming and live stat information, visit snowbadgers.com.