Championship Central
By NICK EATMAN
FRISCO, Texas – After watching its comfortable halftime lead evaporate in the second half, DBU had to dig deep to surge past Lubbock Christian in Sunday’s LSC Tournament final.
DBU turned to do-it-all Xavion Brown, who took over the game on both ends of the floor with vicious dunks, timely blocks and rebounds to help DBU to a 76-70 win for the school’s first-ever LSC Tournament title.
Brown was named Tournament MVP with a career-high 18 points, along with nine rebounds, five assists and three blocks. Down the stretch, Brown ignited the DBU comeback of its own a sky-high offensive rebound and monster slam dunk.
The No. 1 seed in the LSC Tournament, DBU (30-4) now sets its sights on next week’s regional tournament, hopeful to jump up from No. 2 in the latest rankings and possibly host the South Central Regional in Dallas. LCU (25-8), the tourney’s No. 2 seed, ranks third in the region..
DBU had a 14-point lead at halftime, 42-28, and positioned to be in complete control for the rest of the game. But LCU had other ideas as the trio of Ethan Duncan, Najeeb Muhammad and Sean Murphy went to work. The Chaps reeled off a 15-2 run before the first media timeout to trim DBU’s lead to 44-43.
LCU got a pair of 3-pointers from Ty Caswell and grabbed the lead, an advantage it would keep until the final minutes.
But that’s when Brown asserted himself. As the Patriots trailed 62-56, Brown had a layup, two free throws and then another jumper that would tie the game. After a couple of buckets for both teams, Brown gave DBU the lead with a layup and then scored another layup moments later for a 72-68 lead. From there, the Patriots held on but not before Brown had one more signature play, blocking Duncan’s 3-point attempt in the final seconds for the exclamation mark.
Joining Brown on the All-Tournament team was Ricky Lujan, who had 13 points and four assists.
LCU had two players – Duncan and Muhammad on the team, along with West Texas A&M guard Ahamed Mohammed.
DBU Notes:
- DBU is seeking to jump to the No. 1 spot in the South Central Region. Currently at No. 2, the Patriots won three neutral-site games in the LSC Tournament.
- Brown, a transfer from Appalachian State, had a career-high of just 13 points at ASU and 17 points this season – also against LCU on Dec. 6.
- The Patriots had three players finish the championship game with at least eight points – Cameron Kahn, Cody Stevens and Trevor Frank.
- The Patriots advanced to the tournament finals for the first time since joining the LSC and improved their tourney record to 5-5.
- Xavion Brown is fourth in steals (2.0), third in blocks (1.2) and fifth in assists (3.8) in the LSC. On Sunday, he had two steals, three blocks and five assists.
LCU Notes:
- LCU drops to 0-2 in all-time LSC Championship final appearances, losing the last two years in the final game..
- Ethan Duncan, highlighted by a 37-point performance in the semifinals, totaled 78 points in his three games in Frisco. He scored 18 points in the quarterfinal and 23 in Sunday’s loss to DBU.
- Duncan’s 37 points is tied for the sixth-most points in any LSC Tournament game. He’s among 10 players who have hit 37 or more and the first since 2020 when Angelo State’s Collin Turner set the single-game record with 47.
- Duncan is the only player on the All-Tournament team to be selected for a second straight year.
- LCU leads the conference in 3-pointers made per game at 9.2 this year. The Chaps hit 9-of-26 with Duncan and Muhammad each making three.