Going to Kansas City! Jimmies topple No. 3 Pilots

Two years ago, when some might've thought University of Jamestown men's basketball wouldn't measure up in its first Great Plains Athletic Conference season, the Jimmies won the GPAC tournament title.

Saturday, when some might've thought former NAIA Division II men's basketball teams wouldn't measure up this season with former NAIA Division I teams, the Jimmies handed Louisiana State University Shreveport its lunch.

Jamestown is going to Kansas City, having defeated the No. 3-ranked LSU Shreveport Pilots 87-75 to win the Omaha B bracket of the NAIA national tournament opening round held at Sokol Arena, home of the Creighton University Bluejays.

The national tournament's round of 16 begins next Thursday in Missouri.

"It's kinda like when they said we couldn't compete in the GPAC," Jimmie men's basketball coach Danny Neville said. "You tell us we can't do something, we're gonna prove you wrong."

The Pilots (16-2), averaging nearly 100 points per game (98.7) entering the tournament, never once looked comfortable. Shreveport's big guns -- senior guards Kadaivon Evans and Leondre Washington -- were held to a combined eight points in the first half as the Jimmies led 38-30 after 20 minutes.

Washington, averaging 21.4 points per game, and 6-foot-7 Akeem White both picked up two first-half fouls, which tightened up the Pilots early and allowed momentum to manifest off the bench for UJ in the form of freshman guard Cole Woodford.

After trailing by as many as seven, the Jimmies put together a 24-7 run that included a 3-pointer and five consecutive points from Woodford that helped push UJ into the lead by double figures at 29-19 with six minutes to play in the half. Woodford finished with a career-high 20 points.

"We knew we had to come in and play confident and just believe in ourselves," Woodford said. "Play hard and let the rest do the work."

Empty Shreveport possessions (12 of 33 shooting) and UJ outworking the favorite 26-17 on the glass largely contributed to the Jimmies' lead at the break. UJ left a few opportunities on the court in the first half, converting just 4 of 14 from downtown, but made up for that after the break.

Woodford splashed in two more triples, UJ's Marc Kjos and Will Cordes each followed suit, and a corner 3 out of the hand of senior Jack Talley with 5:45 to play was the dagger. Jamestown led 69-51.

"I thought our guys really stepped up, especially when Shreveport went to that (2-3) zone, I thought our guards hit some big shots," Neville said. "I felt like we were getting good looks all game long, too, they just weren't falling for us early, but we just told those guys to just keep shooting."

A total of 15 of UJ's final 18 points would come at the foul line, as the Jimmies sank 15 of 18 freebies over the final three minutes and change and arguably sent the Pilots home early in their 17th consecutive appearance in the national tournament.

"We knew they were going to start fouling and it was up to us to put in the shots," Woodford said.

Neville's young backcourt of Woodford and starters Kjos, a sophomore, and Cordes, a freshman, played beyond their years. Kjos went 4-for-9 from downtown and finished scoring 15, while Cordes scored 12 and limited Shreveport's Washington to 11 points on 2 of 16 from the field and 6 of 10 at the foul line. Cordes was also instrumental in UJ shutting down Bellevue's Jemiel King in Friday's 86-69 victory over the Bruins.

UJ senior transfer guard Allante' Pickens was no longer a member of the team following the GPAC tournament.

"We're running a press break and I'm looking down there and we have a freshman inbounding it, a sophomore getting it and another freshman guard that's bringing it up the court," Neville said. "That's pretty cool for us and our program.

"I just think the win, in general, is definitely a program-changer for us. I definitely think we've put our stamp on who we are and what we're going to continue to do."

UJ sophomore star Mason Walters produced his 22nd double-double of the season with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Brady Birch scored nine and pulled in eight of UJ's 41 rebounds.

After scoring just two points in the first half, Evans, an NAIA Division I honorable mention All American last season, would lead the Pilots in scoring with 21.

"I think Shreveport hadn't played a team like us all season long," Neville said. "It was tough for them to adjust to what we were doing and our guys just kept grinding and pushing. It was a team effort and I am just so proud of them.

"Our guys just believed. You could tell they wanted to play Jimmie basketball."

The coach also said support for the Jimmies in Omaha was second to none.

"It felt like a home game," Neville said. "The Jimmie fans and our support were unbelievable."

Jamestown advanced to the round of 16 in the NAIA Division II tournament in 2019. The former two-division NAIA basketball format was combined into a single division of hoops beginning this season.

"We showed today that we can compete with the (former) D-I's," Woodford said. "We just need to keep playing confident and believe in ourselves."

(RV) University of Jamestown 87, (3) Louisiana State University Shreveport 75

UJ 38 49 -- 87

LS 30 45 -- 75

UJ -- Cole Woodford 20, Mason Walters 19, Marc Kjos 15, Will Cordes 12, Brady Birch 9, Brock Schrom 6, Jack Talley 5, Devan Praska 1. Totals: 30-57 FG, 9-24 3-pointers (Kjos 4, Woodford 3, Cordes, Talley), 18-24 FT, 41 Rebounds (Walters 10, Birch 8), 13 Fouls, 16 Assists (Kjos 4, Woodford 4, Cordes 3), 15 Turnovers, 3 Blocks (Cordes, Walters, Schrom), 2 Steals (Birch 2).

LS -- Kadavion Evans 21, Leondre Washington 11, Akeem White 10, Brennan Maddox 9, Jeff Boyd 9, Kelvin Henry Jr. 7, Royce Hunter 6, Trey Johnson 2. Totals: 28-71 FG, 7-24 3-pointers (Hunter 2, Maddox 2, Washington, Boyd, Henry), 12-19 FT, 35 Rebounds (Boyd 7), 24 Fouls (Washington, Johnson), 7 Assists (Nate Levin 2), 10 Turnovers, 1 Block, 9 Steals (Evans 2, Boyd 2, Jonson 2).

Records: Jamestown 21-8. LSU Shreveport 16-2.