Benedictone Captures Second Straight NACC Tournament - Feb 27, 2017

The 11th-ranked Benedictine University men's basketball team rallied from a 15-point first half deficit to secure a second consecutive NACC Tournament championship and a return trip to the NCAA Tournament.

FINAL SCORE
Benedictine 93, Concordia Wisconsin 89

THE DETAILS
Concordia Wisconsin exploded out of the box, opening a 12-0 lead to start the game
The advantage reached 15 points at 17-2 less than five minutes into the contest
Still trailing 20-5 with 14:39 left in the first half, Brayden Olson (6'5''-G) connected on a three-pointer to spark the team
Michael Blaszczyk (6'3''-G) kicked off an 8-0 run by hammering home a dunk following a steal from Tahron Harvey (6'3''-G)
A transition layup from Harvey brought Benedictine within 24-20 with 9:34 left in the half
Trailing 29-22, Kenny Bogus scored a layup to start a 9-0 run
Bogus made a three-pointer with 6:06 remaining in the first to put Benedictine ahead for the first time at 31-29
Benedictine did not trail again the remainder of the half, leading by five points on a three-pointer from Blaszczyk and took a 43-41 lead into the break
Concordia Wisconsin started the second half the same way as the first, making three consecutive three-pointers to use a 9-0 run to lead 50-43 with 18:26 to play
Adam Reynolds (6'6''-F) finished a 7-0 run to tie the game with 15:28 remaining
Tied at 54 moments later, Benedictine used an 11-2 run to jump ahead 65-56 past the midway point of the half on a basket from Matt Chaltin (6'4''-F)
The visitors battled within four points with just over eight minutes remaining
Benedictine utilized another 9-0 run to move ahead by 14 points at 78-64 with just over three minutes left
Benedictine continued to lead by 12 with 1:01 left on two free throws from Harvey
Concordia Wisconsin did not give up, battling within three points in the final moments
The win marked the 12th in a row for Benedictine since a loss to Concordia Wisconsin broke a 34-game conference win streak
Benedictine reached the NCAA Tournament for a second consecutive season, marking the second time in program history that the team will play in consecutive tournaments
Benedictine became just the second team ever to repeat as NACC Tournament champs

STAT LEADERS
Benedictine shot 50.7 percent in the contest but was out rebounded 39-36
Benedictine posted 23 assists and turned the ball over just six times
Harvey tallied his second triple-double with 13 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists
Reynolds picked up 27 points, making 11 field goals, to go with eight rebounds
Olson collected 21 points and Blaszczyk notched 18
The bench contributed 29 points

NACC Tournament Final: Benedictine - Concordia Wisconsin 93-89
NACC Tournament Semifinals:
Benedictine - Wisconsin Lutheran 72-63
Concordia Wisconsin - Aurora 90-86

Courtesy of BenUEagles