SHAWNEE, Okla. — Arkansas Tech overcame an early deficit on Sunday with a 72-57 win over upset Southern Nazarene in the Great American Conference Championship.
The Wonder Boys (25-6), who trailed 19-11 midway through the first half, continued to make a 20-4 run and entered halftime with a 33-27 lead. Tech dominated inside and outscored the Crimson Storm (16-14) in the paint by a 20-8 margin.
In the second half, tournament MVP Cassius Brooks made 5 of 9 shots and the Wonder Boys made just two 3-pointers and never relinquished the lead. Southern Nazarene made 5 of 9 attempts in the first 20 minutes, but its 3-point defense improved dramatically in the second half as it made just 1 of 11 3-point attempts.
Brooks scored 21 points Sunday, averaging 21.3 points in three wins and was named MVP. He added eight rebounds against the Crimson Storm. Tommy Camarado and Cade Shafer also represented Tech on the eight-man team. Camarado averaged 13.0 points and 8.3 rebounds, and Schafer dished out 4.3 assists per game. The Wonder Boys made GAC history by becoming the first men's program to win his three titles at the GAC Basketball Championship.
Ben Baker-McCann, Jonas Visser and Benno Zecic were named to the All-Tournament Team. Baker McCann averaged 14.7 points on 57.1 percent shooting in the tournament. Visser went 17-of-22 from the floor in three games. Zesic had eight assists against the Wonder Boys, tying a tournament record with 24 total assists.
Brian Free of Northwestern Oklahoma State University and Brennen Burns of Southeastern Oklahoma State University rounded out the all-tournament team. Free averaged 13.0 points per game and made 6 of 10 from 3-point range. Barnes averaged 23.0 points and 5.5 assists.
The Wonder Boys will play Minnesota State (29-2) in the NCAA Division II first round on Saturday at 6 p.m.
Arkansas Tech last appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 2017. The Wonder Boys made it to the NCAA Tournament eight times between 2009 and 2017.
Click here to view the NCAA Division II men's bracket.
