Greenville, SC – The Grace Christian University Tigers are bringing home the NCCAA DII National Championship banner after taking part in what will go down as one of the greatest National Championship games in college basketball history, regardless of division.

They faced a familiar opponent in #4 seeded Great Lakes Christian College, the first time ever two Michigan teams have ever faced o in the NCCAA National Tournament.  The two teams split this season, with the Tigers winning at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit and the Crusaders prevailing on their home court.

Things were smooth sailing for the Tigers throughout the first 33 minutes of the game, as they led by as many as 25 points and held a comfortable 69-51 lead with less than 7:00 remaining in the game.  At this point the Crusaders started to chip away their deficit quickly, with high-pressure defense and high-powered offense.  In seemingly the blink of an eye, they went on a 12-0 run to trim the Tiger lead to 69-63.  The Tigers never surrendered their lead, but the Crusaders would trim it to 3 points at 75-72 with just 15 seconds remaining.  A missed free throw for the Tigers would be followed by a huge three-point shot by the Crusaders with under a second to go to tie things up at 75-75 and force overtime. 

The Tigers got the first bucket of the extra period, and the two teams would trade baskets a couple more times before Great Lakes scored with 25 seconds to go to take an 83-81 lead. 

And then, it happened.    

After running 20 seconds off the clock, freshman Kellum Bridgeforth received the ball on the left wing with 5.5 seconds left, used a jab step to freeze his defender and rose up for a three-point shot, and the gym erupted as the ball went through the hoop, nothing but net.  Down 84-83, Great Lakes took the ball the length of the court and could not get a shot off before the buzzer.  The joyful celebration ensued for the Tigers, after winning the National Championship in such thrilling fashion. Video of this sequence can be seen below the article.

This game has surely provided the spark for a budding rivalry that will be alive and well for years to come with a very impressive and revamped Great Lakes Christian College basketball program.

Bridgeforth finished with a career-high 21 points and 7 rebounds en route to earning the National Tournament Most Valuable Player award.  Junior Brandon Winchester-Jones added 18 points and junior Adam Kregel pitched in 14 points and pulled down 8 rebounds.  Senior Bernard Smith capped off his illustrious career at Grace with All-Tournament honors. 

Now it's time to order up some rings, hang the banner, and put the jumbo picture up at the Aldrich Athletic Center to mark this historic accomplishment. Congrats Tigers on a job well done!