POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. - Saint Francis showed for 20 minutes it could hang with Oklahoma Wesleyan on Monday, but at halftime it appeared the Cougars might have to compete against the defending national champions without DeJovaun Sawyer-Davis.
Saint Francis’ star forward twisted an ankle late in the first half.
But Sawyer-Davis didn’t let the injury end his night and Saint Francis didn’t let the Eagles end its championship hopes. The 15th-seeded Cougars posted as big an upset as there has been at the NAIA Division II National Tournament by pulling out a 77-73 semifinal win.
“At halftime, I didn’t think we were going to be able to play him,” Saint Francis coach Jeff Rekeweg said of Sawyer-Davis. “What courage he has. He wanted out there. Hopefully our trainer will be able to get him ready (for tonight).”
The Cougars (26-9), the lowest seed among the semifinalists, will play in their first national championship game against top-seeded Walsh (Ohio) at 8 tonight.
Walsh (31-2) beat Bellevue (Neb.) 67-66 to advance.
Saint Francis and Walsh met in December, with the Cougars winning at home 87-76.
Sawyer-Davis finished with 17 points and nine rebounds while logging 40 minutes for the second straight game.
“I knew I had to gut it through the second half for my team,” Sawyer-Davis said. “I didn’t want to go out like that.”
Guard Qadr Owens added, “I play with him in the summer time as well and I’ve seen him play with worse injuries than that. He’s a warrior.”
No. 6 seed Oklahoma Wesleyan certainly didn’t make it an easy final 20 minutes for Sawyer-Davis, pushing him around in the paint and about everywhere else on the court, too.
“They saw me roll my ankle and thought wearing me down might affect me,” Sawyer-Davis said. “I had to battle throught it.”
Saint Francis has ousted the Nos. 2, 6 and 10 seeds, as well as a Black Hills State team that was ranked second in the preseason poll.
“I don’t think people have given us a chance since the first round,” Rekeweg said.
“We love being the underdog,” Owens said. “We feel we have something to prove.”
Owens led the Cougars with a 25-point effort.
After the teams were tied at 66, Sawyer-Davis made two free throws with 1:51 to play to give Saint Francis the lead for good.
Oklahoma Wesleyan (31-6) enjoyed as much as a 13-point lead in the first half. But the Cougars maintained their composure in front of a partisan Eagles crowd. Bartlesville, Okla., is less than a four-hour drive from College of the Ozarks.
Eagles guard Steve Briggs, crowned the NAIA Division II Player of The Year on Sunday, had 36 points.
Saint Francis guard Austin Leisure continued his strong and surprising play. Averaging only 3.7 points a game entering the tourney, Leisure scored 14 points and dished out a pair of assists. He had 15 in the Cougars’ quarterfinal win over Cornerstone (Mich.).
