Final Score: No. 11 Keiser Seahawks 76, No. 8 Hope International Royals 79
Records: Keiser (25-6), Hope International (25-6)
Location: Darling Pavilion - Fullerton, CA
Keiser Starters: Loghan Downie (G), Jackson Slater (G), Cameron Baldwin (F), Camerin James (F), Nadir Myers (G)
Hope Int'l Starters: Nick Hopkins (G), Addy G'Bye (G), Darvelle Wyatt (F), Jorren Edmonds (G), CJ Fisher (F)

Camerin James poured in a game-high 26 points and was electric in the final minutes, but Hope International's depth and clutch shooting down the stretch proved to be the difference, as the Royals outlasted Keiser 79-76 in the NAIA National Tournament Second-Round contest at Darling Pavilion.

The opening half was a story of momentum swings, with Keiser establishing an early grip on the game and holding on by the slimmest of margins at the break. After a scoreless opening sequence, Nick Hopkins got the Royals on the board first with a layup at 17:48. The Seahawks answered immediately, with Jackson Slater burying a three-pointer to put the Seahawks ahead 3-2. The Royals couldn't find their footing early, and Keiser started to impose their will through Jaylen Lee and James, who combined for a quick-strike run that pushed the lead to 20-10 just past the eleven-minute mark. Hope International called a timeout and tried to regroup, but Keiser kept the pedal down, with Jackson Kennedy connecting on a layup and James adding a pair of free throws to push the advantage to 24-8 and then to a first-half high of 26-8 after another Lee layup. The Royals fought back with five straight points to cut the deficit to 26-15. Hopkins added a layup, and Addy G'Bye began to find his rhythm, helping the Royals chip away. A three-pointer at the 4:33 mark, followed by another Haynes layup, suddenly made it a one-possession game at 31-30. In the final seconds, Loghan Downie stripped a Hopkins turnover, and Nadir Myers drained a corner three on the next possession to send Keiser to the break with a 37-36 lead.

The second half opened with Hope International taking a 39-38 lead. Keiser answered with a pair of Myers free throws, and the two teams traded punches. After a pair of buckets by the Royals, James came back with a deep three to keep the Seahawks within striking distance at 44-43. Hopkins hit a three to extend the lead to 47-43, and after Downie tied things back up at 52 with a pair of three-pointers, the game entered a wild stretch of tie scores and lead changes. Baldwin gave the Seahawks a 54-52 edge with a putback layup, only for the Royals to respond with a CJ Fisher layup and then back-to-back threes from Edmonds and G'Bye to push the lead out to 62-54, the largest margin either team had held in the second half. Keiser refused to fold as James converted free throws, Baldwin sliced through the lane for a layup, and Slater added a pair to pull within 63-65. James tied it at 66 from the line, and a Baldwin steal set up another Keiser bucket to knot it at 69. The Royals continued to fight, pushing the lead back to 72-69, and Wyatt added another from deep at 2:07 to make it 72-71 as the clock wound down. James twice tied the game from the free-throw line, first at 72 and then at 75 with 13 seconds remaining. However, Edmonds drew a foul at the other end and drained both free throws to put Hope up by one with less than 10 seconds to play. Keiser would have a chance at the end, but Edmonds would steal it away and seal the game with a pair of free throws at the line.
 

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• The Seahawks finish the season with a 25-6 record
• Keiser moves to 16-15 all-time in the NAIA Postseason
• The 25 wins for the Seahawks are the second-most under Head Coach Marcus "Chief" Bryant
• James led all scorers with 26 points, 10 rebounds, and a block
• Lee added 12 points and five rebounds off the bench
• Downie chipped in with eight points and a team-high three steals
• Baldwin finished with five blocks and three steals
• He ends the year with a new program record with 95 blocks in a season
• As a team, Keiser also set a new program record for blocks in a season with 193
• Slater finished the season with the third-best single-season free throw percentage in program history at 51.7%, still leading the NAIA
• Keiser shot 50.1 percent from the field as a team for the season, the best field goal percentage in program history for a single season

 

• Ties: 9
• Lead Changes: 16
• Largest Lead: Keiser (12); Hope International (7)

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