Kentucky Wesleyan is returning to the NCAA Division II Tournament.
After missing out on the tournament for the past three seasons, the No. 9 Panthers earned an automatic bid with a 78-69 victory over Trevecca Nazarene in the G-MAC Championship title game on Saturday at the Sportscenter.
The full NCAA bracket will be announced Sunday night at 9:30 p.m., but Saturday afternoon was for celebrating.
"This is one of the best feelings ever," said junior guard Ken-Jah Bosley, who scored 17 points against the Trojans. "I'm still letting it sink in a little bit. We expected to do this, but it's so emotional because we came up short two years ago and last year. Oh my gosh, it means so much to me. It really does."
After falling in the G-MAC tournament title game the last two seasons, the third time was the charm for the Panthers (27-3).
Things started out rocky for KWC, though, as Trevecca (16-15) used a 10-2 run during the first half for a 34-26 lead with 4:14 left until halftime. However, the Panthers began to force turnovers and get out in transition, closing the half on a 14-0 run for a 40-34 advantage at intermission.
KWC held a considerable lead for much of the second half, even going ahead 65-51 on a Bosley free throw with 7:17 left to play.
But the Trojans wouldn't go away.
Trevecca's Mac Walden scored nine of his 15 points during a 16-5 run that cut the Panthers' lead to just 70-67 with 2:33 left. A Devin Langford free throw pushed the contest to a two-possession affair, and the Panthers were able to get stops and make free throws down the stretch to secure the victory.
"The first 15 minutes, they kicked our tail," KWC coach Happy Osborne said. "(Matt) Gamberoni kicked our tail, and they did a really nice job inside. The last 25 minutes of the game, they scored 35 points. The first 15 minutes, they had 34. Our defense and getting deflections was the difference."
After closing the game on a 9-2 run, it was time for the Panthers to celebrate and cut down the nets.
"We wanted it, we wanted it really bad," Bosley said. "Me, Dev, Happy and (assistant coach) Brett Miller, we've been through the struggle the last three years. We've gotten to this point and came up short. We knew this year was not going to be the same. We were ready, we were locked in the whole time.
"We said no matter what happens in the game, we were going to stick together. Whether they had runs or if we made a mistake or anything of that nature, we still stuck together."
Langford led the Panthers with 21 points, nine rebounds, three steals and three assists. Bosley added six rebounds, four assists and three steals to his scoring output, while Jordan Jacks and C.J. Blackwell added 13 and 10 points, respectively. Marcus Fillyaw chipped in nine points with three steals.
"The hard work's finally paid off, and it feels great," Langford said. "I don't think we're done yet, I think this is the start of something great. It feels great, and we want to keep it going."
Gamberoni led the Trojans with 17 points but committed seven turnovers, and Percy Blade added 15 points. Conference player of the year Byron Sanford finished with nine points with six giveaways.
Osborne said he was just thankful to see KWC get back to the NCAA Tournament.
"I'm happy for the players that worked so hard," he said. "I think the big difference for our team has been the leadership of C.J. Blackwell and Devin Langford, just those two guys growing up. I'm happy for Filly, there's not a better kid in the world than Filly. I'm happy for all of them, they've all worked hard.
"I'm happy for our fans. Our fans deserve it. They're some of the most loyal people in the world."
As for Bosley, he's got a place in mind for the basketball net he cut down from the Sportscenter rims.
"I never thought I'd cut down the nets in college," he said. "I'm probably gonna put it next to my (high school) district and region and state championship stuff, but it'll be at the top. Definitely at the top."
