Brandon Herlein

Grace used solid shooting from the field (56.9%) and a 45-17 rebounding edge to overcome 27 turnovers in downing Dallas Christian 78-64 on Thursday night in Springfield, MO.  The win moves the Tigers into the NCCAA DII Final Four for the second straight year.  Grace will take on Central Bible College, the host school for the tournament, at 8 PM CST on Friday night.  Central Bible was an 85-67 winner over Ohio Christian University.  The winner of tomorrow night’s semi-final will advance to the National Championship game on Saturday at 4 PM.

Senior Brandon Herlein began the night with two three pointers to move him past the 1000 point mark for his career.  He finished the night with 14 points.  Junior Allen Durham had his usual solid performance with 27 points and 9 rebounds but it was sophomore Ryan Krombeen who came up big for the Tigers with 20 points and 15 boards.  Christian Lawyer led Dallas Christian with 18 points.

“I wasn’t pleased with the careless way we handled the ball tonight,” said Coach Gary Bailey, “But I think we were a bit rusty from the pre-tourney layoff and Dallas Christian deserves a lot of credit for playing us tough and physical.  I’m confident we will do a better job with taking care of the ball tomorrow.”

Listen to all of the NCCAA II National Tournament games live at www.ccsnonline.com.  The CCSN staff will be broadcasting every game throughout the tournament.  Check this site for times.

Tonight’s game (Thursday) will begin at 7:00pm EST at www.ccsnonline.com.

To listen to Coach Gary Bailey’s CCSN interview recorded earlier today click on the website below.  You can also read many articles or listen to other interviews on The Christian College Sports Network at www.ccsnonline.com

Coach Bailey’s Interview:  http://ccsnonline.com/ccsn-live-audio/2010/3/5/mens-basketball-interview-with-gary-bailey.html

Allen Durham

Allen Durham was selected as the ACCA (Association of Christian College Athletics) National Player of the Year on March 3rd in Oklahoma City, OK.  Durham, a Junior, was a 2nd Team All-American in 2009.  Durham averaged 21 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 assists a game this year while shooting a staggering 68% from the floor.

Kyle Bohl, Dan George, Kent Karnemaat, Gary Bailey

For the 3rd straight year, Coach Gary Bailey and his staff have been named the Midwest Region Coach of the Year.  The Tigers won the Midwest Region for the third straight year and are the #1 seed in the NCCAA National Tournament which begins next week.  The Tigers are currently 25-10 on the season and have won 36 consecutive NCCAA II games.

“It is an honor for this coaching staff to receive this award.  We work very hard to put a good team on the floor and also work to make sure that this team shows good sportsmanship and character on and off the floor.  Being  voted for this award by the other coaches means alot to us.”  – Gary Bailey

The Tigers have landed the #1 seed in the upcoming NCCAA DII National Tournament to be held in Springfield, Missouri March 9-13.  Grace is 25-10 (winning their last 12 in a row) going into the tourney with a 16-0 record against NCCAA DII colleges this year.  The Tigers have a first round bye by virtue of their number one seed.  Their first game of the tournament is at 6:00 PM on Thursday, March 11 against the winner of Dallas Christian (TX) and Baptist Bible College (MO).

Brandon Herlein, Ryan Krombeen, Allen Durham

Senior Brandon Herlein, Junior Allen Durham, and Sophomore Ryan Krombeen were named to the All-Midwest Region team.  The three are also the team captains for the Tigers.  Seniors Paul Nelson and Kyle Rothley were selected as Honorable Mention.  Congratulations Brandon, Allen, Ryan, Paul, and Kyle! 

Paul Nelson

Kyle Rothley

2010 Midwest Region Champions

The Tigers came prepared and focused to play in Saturday’s Midwest Regional Championship against Maranatha Baptist Bible College in Watertown, Wisconsin. Jumping on the Crusaders with a 12-0 start, Grace never looked back in a 77-49 victory. “I was extremely pleased with our defensive scheme and execution,” commented Coach Gary Bailey. With approximately 4 minutes left in the game the Tigers had allowed only 38 points to the Crusaders and Coach Bailey cleared the bench. Grace shot a blistering 75% from the field in the first half to Maranatha’s 33% and held the Crusaders to one player in double figures, Brendon Brown with 11. Ryan Krombeen and Allen Durham paced the Tigers with 17 points and 6 rebounds each. Brandon Herlein scored 11 and Cory Jamieson added 12 points with 6 rebounds and led the Tigers with 5 assists.

Grace will travel to Springfield, Missouri for the NCCAA DII National Championship which begins March 9.

To watch today’s NCCAA II Midwest Regional final, click on the link below and follow the directions.

http://www.meridix.com/everywhere.php?liveid=MaranathaBaptist

Once again the Tigers showed their balance as eleven players found the scoring column in a 84-58 victory over Kuyper College.  Ryan Krombeen led GBC with 17 points and 7 boards.  Ryan Dame stepped in for injured Dan Dame and scored 13 points and pulled down 9 rebounds.  Allen Durham scored 11 points with 6 rebounds and 5 assists. 

“After Kuyper’s win over Northland, we thought that they would be ready to play tonight,” said Coach Gary Bailey.  “They are big and rebound well.  We tried to get out and run because they are not as deep as we are and we did a nice job with it.  We knew Billups would get his and we wanted to make sure no one else did.”  Kuyper did not have another player over four points in the game.

Once again the Tigers kept their players in low minutes.  “It was important to make sure that we have something left for tomorrow night,” said Bailey.  “Once we were up, our bench came in and extended the lead.  It was nice to keep the guys minutes under twenty because we play again at 2:00pm tomorrow.

Grace outrebounded KU 46-33 and led in assists 24-9.  GBC also connected on 48% from the floor compared to 35% for Kuyper. 

The Tigers play the #2 seed and host team, Maranatha, at 2:00pm CST on Saturday.