BUTTE, Mont. – The Lewis-Clark State Men’s Basketball team is one of 64 teams remaining with a shot at the NAIA Championship. The first round of the tournament is this Friday, and the 11th-seeded Warriors will face sixth-seeded Hope International at 4 p.m. PT at Kelvin Sampson Court.
“We’re excited for the opportunity to compete on the national stage,” coach Austin Johnson said. “Hope International is a very tough team.”
Johnson and LC State are familiar with the Royals as the two met in the Taco Bell Shootout on Nov. 25 in Caldwell, Idaho. Hope International were victorious in a 74-71 contest. A 3-pointer by Tristan Williams with two seconds remaining was the difference.
In the game back in November, all 11 Warriors who saw the floor scored. John Lustig and Alton Hamilton scored 10 points each. Gavin Ramirez led the Royals with 32 points, Williams finished with 16.
No. 11 Seed – LC State Warriors (22-8, 19-3)
LC State has been battle tested in the 2023-24 season. In eight losses this season, six of those were to teams that made the NAIA tournament. Half of those came before December. The Warriors made the tournament as an at-large bid after losing to No. 17 Oregon Tech in an 82-80 loss during the semifinals of the Cascade Conference tournament.
“Our guys have been through a lot of adversity this year and have really come together as a team,” Johnson said. “A lot of that is due to our three seniors, and in the postseason you need your seniors playing well to have a chance to win.”
Seniors Jaedon Bradley and Davian Brown have led LC State offensively this season. Bradley has a team-leading 14.6 points per game on 44.8% shooting. Brown is averaging 13 points per game, and his 87.1% free throw percentage is best on the team for any player that has at least 10 attempts. Both received All-CCC honors for their efforts this season. Alton Hamilton and Quentin Raynor were honorable mentions.
Bradley became the fifth Warrior to be voted Newcomer of the Year in a conference. The Denver, Colo., native followed Oreon Courtney as a recipient of the award in the Cascade Conference.
Sam Stockton has continued to fill up the stat sheet and late in the season became a strong scoring option in his own right. Stockton reached double-figures in points scored in six of the last seven games. The senior leads the Warriors in assists (81) steals (40) and is currently second behind Anthony Peoples Jr. with 23 blocks.
Hamilton was named the CCC Freshman of the Year, giving a player from LC State the award for the second consecutive year after John Lustig won it in 2023. Hamilton leads the team with 6.4 rebounds a game and brought down 75 offensive rebounds so far this season. The freshman recorded three double-doubles including an 18-point, 17-rebound performance against Northwest on Jan. 27.
Johnson took home his third conference Coach of the Year honor, second in the CCC.
The Warriors hit a 3-pointer 250 times on the year with 148 of those coming from Raynor and Bradley. Both Raynor and Bradley have made 74 each to lead any CCC shooter.
LC State’s last tournament appearance came in the 2021-22 season when LC lost to Jamestown (N.D.) in the opening round 84-70. It is the 18th appearance in the tournament for the Warriors.
“We’ll have to be the best version of ourselves to have a chance to win Friday,” Johnson said. “I’m excited to see how we respond.”
No. 6 Seed – Hope International (21-9, 9-5)
The Royals, out of Fullerton, Calif., earned an at-large bid after an overtime loss in the semifinals of the Golden State Athletic Conference tournament to No. 23 The Master’s University 95-88. It was the sixth time that Hope International played in an overtime contest this season.
Hope International has averaged 77.2 points per game with a margin of victory of +8.8 points per game. The key to the Royals’ game is their ability to steal the basketball. HIU recorded 315 steals in the season, 10.5 per game. Cameron Dashiell led the team with 66 steals.
“The Royals are physical and are elite defensively,” Johnson said. “Offensively they cause a lot of matchup problems.
Ramirez is the leading scorer for the Royals with 14.2 points per game. His 32 points against the Warriors in November was his season high. The senior averages 5.4 rebounds per game and has 50 assists on the season. Ramirez and Williams were named to the All-GSAC team. Head coach Bill Czech won his third Coach of the Year honor.
Gran Sii is strong off the bench for HIU. Sii started only three of the 21 games he has played but averages 12.7 points per game. The junior scored 21 points in the conference semifinal loss.
Hope International is making its second consecutive trip to the NAIA tournament and 10th all-time. The Royals were a No. 9 seed last year and lost in the first round to Xavier (La.) 95-57.
THE REST OF THE FIELD
The other matchup in the Butte, Mont., pod is between No. 14 Wayland Baptist (Texas) against No. 3 and host Montana Tech. The Orediggers finished the season 26-4 and won the Frontier Conference Championship. The Pioneers went 21-9 and reached the tournament as an at-large bid.
Montana Tech is making its third consecutive appearance in the tournament and fifth all-time. For Wayland Baptist it is the second consecutive time they have reached the tournament and 22nd overall.
The Orediggers and LC State met in the Montana Tech Fall Classic at Kelvin Sampson Court when Montana Tech earned a 79-55 victory on Nov. 17.
THE DETAILS
Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. PT on Friday in Butte. The contest will be streamed by Montana Tech and KOZE will pull a radio broadcast from Butte.
The winners of Friday’s contests advance to the NAIA Second Round in Butte on Saturday.
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