Bruins claim MCAC title, Tyler keys comeback

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BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Junior \#Avery Tyler\# scored 15 second-half points as the Bellevue University men's basketball team overcame a seven-point halftime deficit, defeating No. 4-ranked Oklahoma Wesleyan, 75-72, Saturday night (Feb. 27) to claim the 2009-10 Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament title at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.

With the win, the sixth-ranked Bruins improved to 25-7 on the season, earning an automatic berth to the NAIA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship on Mar. 10-16 in Point Lookout, Mo.

Tyler led four Bruins in double figures with 18 points, while adding four steals and three assists. Senior \#Antoine Dade\# and sophomore \#Jelani Johnson\# added 13 points apiece and senior \#Josh Vanderslice\# poured in 12 points.

Steve Briggs, the MCAC Player of the Year, led all scorers with 28 points. Aaron Crowley was the only other Eagle in double figures with 12 points.

Paced by Briggs' 16 points and 10 Bellevue turnovers, the Eagles built a 40-33 halftime lead, despite  shooting just 42.9 percent from the field.

The Bruins were led in the opening half by Johnson's 11 points and four rebounds. Bellevue shot 44.1 percent in the first period, but hit just 1-of-10 shots from behind the 3-point arc.

Bellevue heated up in the second half, shooting 62.5 percent from the field, including 4-of-5 3-pointers.

Fueled by Tyler's 11 points in a three-minute span, the Bruins went on a 19-3 run to take a 57-49 lead with 11 minutes remaining in the game. Five-straight points by Briggs cut the Bruin lead to 57-54. Vanderslice responded by scoring eight-straight points including back-to-back 3-pointers to give Bellevue a 66-54 advantage at the nine-minute mark.

The Eagles responded with eight-straight points to slash the lead to four at 66-62 with six minutes left. A 3-pointer by Crowley cut the BU lead to 69-66 with four minutes to go in the game. Briggs cut the lead to one at 71-70 on a short jumper in the lane at 1:28.

\#Jace Fredenburg\# nailed a pair of free throws with 21 seconds remaining to give the Bruins a 73-70 advantage. Crowley hit two free shots to cut it to 73-72 with 15 seconds to go. Tyler hit two clutch free throws with seven seconds remaining and the Eagles' Jeff Jewitt missed the front-end of a one-and-one with 2 seconds to go, giving the Bruins the 75-72 win.

The selections for the NAIA Men's Basketball Division II National Tournament will be announced on Tuesday, Mar. 2. Official pairings for the tournament will be announced on Wednesday, Mar. 3 at 4 p.m. on CollegeFanz.