Westmont advanced to the quarterfinals of the NAIA Men’s National Basketball Tournament on Friday with a 65-61 win over Campbellsville, Ky.
Cory Blau hit two free throws with four seconds to go for a two-point lead, and the Warriors forced a turnover. With 1.8 seconds left, Campbellsville fouled Hayden Anderson and he made both of his free throws for the final margin.
Westmont plays against Mid-American Christian (Okla.) in a quarterfinal game in Kansas City at 4 p.m. PDT on Saturday.
“Our defense was phenomenal,” Westmont coach John Moore said. “That last stop forced them to throw it out at the three second mark. Our defense once again came through.”
The Warriors held Campbellsville to 18 points in the second half. The Tigers, who sank seven of 13 three-pointers in the first half, made only two of their 11 shots from downtown in the second.
“That is unbelievable,” raved Moore.
Blau scored a team-high 17 points had four rebounds and two assists. Jerry Karczewski played a huge game, hitting 3 of 5 from outside the arc and totaling 14 points. Daniel Carlin, battling against taller players in the paint all night, scored 14 points and pulled down nine rebounds.
“Our guys played with incredible energy and I am so proud of them,” said Moore. “This is an opportunity for the Warriors to play on and we are not satisfied. We are far from satisfied and we are going to keep pushing forward.”
