CCU Men's Basketball was named the NCCAA National Champions on Saturday afternoon after they defeated Ohio Christian University 83-74. The Cougars finished their 2016-2017 season 19-16 overall, with an RMAC Tournament appearance, and the NCCAA National Championship title.
 
The Game
 
It was a great game of basketball as both teams were competitive and determined to win. The Cougars' shooting was slightly more accurate than Ohio, but CCU could not keep hold of the ball as they had 18 turnovers. The turnovers gave the Trailblazers opportunity after opportunity to make buckets. Luckily for CCU, Ohio struggled to hit a shot.
 
OCU's #24 Marquis Jackson was a huge threat to blue and gold as he scored 29 points. CCU's scoring board was spread out more evenly among the squad with five guys in double digits. Brett Brady was on point as he had 20 points and went 6-13 FG, 4-8 3FG, 4-5 FT. Ty McGee had 16 rebounds in the game, which is the highest this season for an individual in a game. McGee also scored 12 points for the double-double. Jacob Taylor had 18 points shooting 8-12 FG. He was unstoppable from inside. Dimitri Saliba scored 10 points, Jeremiah Hanson had 12, and Andre Lane scored nine with three three pointers.
 
CCU was up at half time 39-37 after a battle in the first half, but stole the game in the second half. They quickly gained ten points on the Trailblazers with 14 minutes to go, and were able to keep the comfortable lead until the end.  The Cougars won the game 83-74.

Honors

• Dimitri Saliba was named the Tournament's Most Outstanding Player, All-Tournament Team, and NCCAA Second Team All-American
• Brett Brady was named All-Tournament Team

Head Coach Kevin Lubbers commented:
 
"This was a great win for our team and our seniors. Players win games and today our guys did a great job. I was really proud of the way they competed. They battled the whole year and I was happy for them to see them finish with a win. Also special thanks to Coach Mulder, Coach Graves, and Coach Folk for all of their contributions and efforts this year"