EUGENE, Ore. – The Northwest Christian University men's basketball team took down No. 21 Midland University 91-78 on Wednesday in the opening round of the NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Championships. 38 points from the bench were key as the Beacons battled through foul trouble all afternoon.
 
The Beacons (25-5) led for most of the contest and held a 44-40 advantage at halftime. NCU went on to shoot a blistering 70% in the second half as they pulled away for their second opening round win in a row.
 
Midland had shot better than 51% in the first half but went colder after the break, hitting 1-for-11 from three-point range and just 36% overall.
 
NCU had five players in double-figures, led by Kenny Blackwell with 20, adding five assists. Brendyn Taylor added 18 points, shooting 8-for-12 from the field. Jack Hackman scored 10 points, adding four assists and a game-high 3 steals as the Warriors committed 12 turnovers.
 
The NCU posts all found themselves in early foul trouble as both Jay Mayernik and Malik Heptot had three fouls before the first 20 minutes were done. The Beacons went with a smaller lineup for most of the second half, relying on junior Michael Loomis (pictured) to take command inside. Loomis got the job done, scoring a double-double with 15 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. He was 7-for-10 from the field.
 
The Beacons held a 38-14 advantage in points off the pine, and also had 13 from Austin Tyner who shot a perfect 5-for-5 from the field.  The Beacons also held a 37-29 rebounding margin and committed just seven turnovers. NCU also produced 16 assists while the Warriors had just three.
 
The Beacons improve to 2-2 all-time at the NAIA tournament, all under the tutelage of Head Coach Luke Jackson. Jackson said, "I am really proud of a great team effort. Alex Starkel had a great game for Midland and I give them a lot of credit. We may not be the most talented individually, but we play together and for each other and we find different ways to win. Today it was Austin and Michael that really stepped up for us."
 
Midland (21-10) had a pair of 20-point performances in the loss, led by Diamontae McKinley who scored 24 points on six three-pointers. Alex Starkel contributed a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Damon Overton was the only other player in double-figures with ten.
 
The Beacons advance to the second round where they will take on No. 2 seed Indiana University East on Friday at 8:15 am (PST). The Red Wolves knocked off Reinhardt College in their first-round game, 84-74.
 
Milestone Watch

• With his three free-throws on Wednesday, Jay Mayernik has tied the NCU single-season record for free-throws with 150. He ties a record held by Austin Kuemper (2013-2014).
• Only a sophomore, Kenny Blackwell is just one assist shy of tying the NCU career record. He has 299 assists and needs two more to pass the all-time mark owned by Erik Quick Warner (2006-2010).