GAME NOTES:

• For the second straight season, the Snow College men's basketball team was selected to participate in the NJCAA National Tournament. They will take on Trinidad State Junior College in the first round Sunday at 11:00 a.m. MDT.

 

• Snow College received an at-large bid into the tournament and was named the No. 9 seed. Of the 24-team field, only the top eight receive first-round byes. The remaining seeds square off in the first round. As the No. 9 seed, the Badgers face Trinidad State, which is the No. 24 seed in the tournament.

 

• The Badgers are coming off the Region 18 Tournament, where they were defeated in the Championship. After earning a 97-84 victory against Utah State University Eastern, Snow College suffered a 64-60 defeat to the College of Southern Idaho.

 

• Snow College concluded the regular season with a 27-3 overall record and a 12-3 mark within Scenic West Athletic Conference play. The Badgers went undefeated at home for the second consecutive season, going 13-0 in back-to-back campaigns.

 

• The Badgers will enter the National Tournament 9^th in the nation in scoring, averaging 90.8 points per game. They are also inside the top 10 in rebounding at 43.7 per game.

 

• In addition to going undefeated at home this season, the Badgers were also 8-0 in neutral-site games. Snow College is 22-5 over the last four years under Head Coach Andrew May in neutral-site games.

 

• This is the fifth time Snow College has been selected to participate in the NJCAA National Tournament and the first time ever in consecutive seasons. The Badgers suffered a heartbreaking loss to Connor's State College in the second round of the tournament last season.

 

• The Badgers have only faced the Trojans once in school history. Snow College earned a 92-53 win Nov. 21, 2008, but hasn't faced them since. Trinidad State owns a 17-16 overall record and a 7-8 mark within Region 9. They defeated Lamar Community College 101-91 to claim the Northwest Plains District Championship.

 
LAST TIME OUT: The Snow College men's basketball came just short of repeating as Region 18 Tournament Champions after suffering a four-point loss to No. 3 College of Southern Idaho last weekend in Twin Falls.

The No. 3 Badgers advanced to the title game following a 97-84 victory over Utah State University Eastern Friday before dropping a 64-60 decision to CSI Saturday.

Snow College caught fire early against USUE and never relinquished control.

After falling behind 9-4 in the opening minutes, the Badgers responded with a quick burst. A 3-pointer from Sam Sivulich tied the game at 9-9, and moments later, Blake Bahr knocked down a triple to give Snow College its first lead. McCaden Adams followed with a 3-pointer at the 12:08 mark to push the advantage to 15-14.

The Badgers continued to build momentum behind their perimeter shooting. Max Toombs drilled a 3-pointer to extend the lead, and Sean Felts added a jumper before Brock McClure converted inside to make it 27-22.

Snow College stretched the lead to double digits late in the half. The Badgers made four 3-pointers in the final six minutes of action, one from James Rust and three from Adams.  McClure finished inside with under a minute remaining, and the Badgers entered halftime leading 48-39.

After USUE trimmed the lead to six early in the second period, McClure sparked a 12-0 run. He scored six of the Badgers' 12 points during the run as Snow College took a 60-42 with 15 minutes to play.

Less than a minute later, Rust and McClure hit back-to-back triples to give the Badgers a 21-point edge. A pair of free throws from Rust and a layup from Lemke gave Snow College its biggest lead of the game, 71-49, with 12:30 to play.

The Eagles punched back and eventually trimmed the Badgers' lead down to as little as eight points with just over two minutes to play. Snow College held USUE at bay to collect the 13-point victory, 97-84.

McClure led Snow College with a career-high 32 points. He also added 10 rebounds for his 13^th double-double of the season. Adams added 21, and Felts finished with 17. The Badgers shot 58 percent from beyond the arc and assisted on 24 field goals in the win.

Adams started the championship against CSI with a 3-pointer, and Lemke followed with a layup to give the Badgers an early 5-0 lead. After CSI tied the game at seven, the teams traded baskets through the middle portion of the half.
 
Snow College took a 3-point lead on two made free throws from Lemke before a 12-2 run from the Golden Eagles gave them a 26-19 advantage with under five to play in the first half. The Badgers responded with a similar 12-3 run to end the half, leading 31-29.

Felts scored the first points of the second half before a 3-pointer from McClure pushed the lead to 37-31. CSI responded and eventually tied the game at 46 midway through the period. Buckets were hard to come by over the final 10 minutes of play.

Over the last 10 minutes of action, the game saw four ties and six lead changes. A 3-pointer from Toombs gave the Badgers a 54-50 lead with under five minutes to play, but a 5-0 CSI run turned the tables.

McClure sank a triple with two minutes left to tip the scales back in favor of Snow College but a layup and a 3-pointer from the Region Tournament Most Valuable Player, Cooper Kesler gave CSI a 60-57 lead with under a minute to play. After the Badgers missed a 3-point attempt on their end, the Golden Eagles sealed the deal at the free-throw line to claim the 64-40 victory.

McClure led the Badgers with 17 points and 14 rebounds – his 14^th double-double of the season, while Toombs added 13 points off the bench.

UP NEXT: Should the Badgers prevail in the first round of the NJCAA National Tournament, they will square off with Butler Community College in the second round. The Grizzlies, who are the No. 8 seed and received a first-round bye, finished the season with a 24-9 overall record and a 17-7 mark within Region 6. They defeated Barton in the Plains District Championship to secure their spot in the National Tournament. For video streaming and live stats information, visit snowbadgers.com.