Second Half Rally Leads Panthers to National TItle

For a team that did not make the NCAA DII tournament a year ago, it was only fitting that a rally from 17 points down in the championship game would give the Drury Panthers a 74-73 win over the Metro State Roadrunners for the national title.
  The win was the 23rd in a row and maybe the most improbable for the Panthers(31-4.) The Panthers trailed 39-22 with 2:51 left in the opening half. The Roadrunners were in command on the scoreboard 39-27 at the half despite the Panthers scoring the halves last five points. The Roadrunners dominated the rebounding battle 18-10 and Metro State had just four turnovers while forcing 12 from DU. Alex Hall sparked a rally early in the second half with a 4 point play that cut the Roadrunners lead to six (43-37.) less than three minutes into the half. A Lonnie Boga 3-pointer with 13:29 to go tied the game at 53. After a few minutes of back and forth action, the Panthers would get the lead 59-58 on a Hall 3-pointer with 9:31 to go. The Roadrunners would then run off the next six points to take a five point lead. It was 73-67 Metro State with 3:51 to go, but the Panthers hold the Roadrunners scoreless over the last 3:51 to secure the title. Hall hit a pair of free throws with 23 seconds left that proved to be the game winners. The Panthers ended the game on a 7-0 run. Hall led the way with 21 points on the day. Brandon Lockhart added 14, Drake Patterson netted 12, and Ian Carter added 10. The Panthers shot 54.2 percent (26-48) from the field. They were a red hot 57.9 percent (11-19) from the 3-point line. The Panthers shot 64.7 percent (11-17) at the foul line. They had 20 assists and 19 turnovers.
  The Roadrunners suffered a crushing title game defeat and fell to 32-3 on the season. The Roadrunners had five players score in double figures on the day. Brandon Jefferson (19) and Mitch McCarron (16) led the way. Demitrius Miller and Jonathan Morse added 14 each. Nicholas Kay had 10. The Roadrunners did not get a single point from the bench in the title game in a total of 15 minutes of action. The Raodrunners shot 46 percent (29-63) from the field and hit just 31 percent (6-19) of their shots from the 3-point line. Metro shot 75 percent (9-12) from the foul line. They won the rebounding battle 33-27. The Roadrunners had 10 assists and turned it over 10 times.

Metro State-Drury Battle For Title Sunday.

The Metro State Road Roadrunners (32-2) (Denver,Co) Ride a nine game win streak into Saturday's DII national title game at Phillips Arena in Atlanta where they will face the Drury University Panthers (30-4) who have won 22 straight. The game will tip at 4 PM Sunday as part of the festivities of the 75th anniversary of the Final Four.
   The Roadrunners are led by five players averaging in double figures on the season. Jonathan Morse comes into Sunday's title game averaging 14.6 points a game and leads the team hauling in 8.4 rebounds a contest. Brandon Jefferson puts up 14.7 a contest, while Mitch McCarron scores 13.1 a night, while dishing out nearly three assists a game. Demitirus Miller (13.8 PPG) and Nicholas Kay (10.8 PPG) round out the double digit scorers for the Roadrunners. The Roadrunners score 78.8 points a game as a team and shoot 41 percent from the 3-point line on the year. They allow 62 points a contest on the defensive end.
How they got here: The Roadrunners knocked off West Liberty in the national semifinals 83-76. They also beat Franklin Pierce in the elite eight 78-65. The Roadrunners got in the tournament by Winning the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament. They won the right to be the regional host in the South Central Region. They opened the NCAA tournament and knocked off Tarleton State (Texas) 76-65, before beating Midwestern State (Texas) 66-60.  The Roadrunners advanced to the elite eight by defeating #23 Saint Mary's (Texas) 78-70.
About Metro State: Metro State of Denver is a public university in Denver,Colorado. As of 2009 it was the second largest enrollment of any college in the state of Colorado. The school has nearly 24.000 students. The school was founded in 1965, the Roadrunners colors are Berry and Navy Blue.  Rowdy the Roadrunner is the school mascot.
   The Drury Panthers come into Sunday's title game riding high on a 22 game win streak. They are led by a pair of players in double figures. Alex Hall comes into Sunday's title game averaging 20.3 points a game. Brandon Lockhart is also having a solid season putting up 12.5 points a night. Teddy Simniok (9.9 ppg) and Ian Carter (9.2 ppg) have been solid all season.  The Panthers averaging 81 points a game, while giving up 63 a contest.  The Panthers are also a very solid 3-point shooting team (42 percent on the season.)
How they got here: The Panthers were the tournament champions of the Great Lakes Valley Tournament. They were then the winners of the Midwest Regional Championship. The Panthers knocked off Findlay 89-77 in the opening round. They then were a 76-62 winner over Michigan Tech. They knocked off former champ Bellarmine 67-61 in the regional final. They then knocked off South Carolina Aiken 84-75, before a big 107-97 win over defending champ Western Washington.
About Drury: Drury is  a private liberal arts college in Springfield, Missouri. The university earns about 1,550 undergrads, over 2,000 adult part time undergrads and about 400 graduate students in six masters programs. The school was founded in 1873. The schools colors are maroon, grey and red.
Meet the Coaches: Drury is coached by Steve Hesser. Hesser is in his eight year with the Panthers and holds a record of 164-71 mark. The Panthers have won at least 20 games in six of Hesser's eight season at the helm. The Panthers have been to the NCAA tournament in five of the past seven seasons. After missing the tournament a year ago, Hesser will coach the Panthers in the DII title game Sunday.
    Derrick Clark is in his third season at the helm for Metro State. He now has a record of 75-19 in his three seasons. The Roadrunners have been to the NCAA tournament in all three of Clark's seasons as coach. Prior to Metro State Clark was an assistant at the University of Colorado for three seasons.
The line: Metro State by 2