WILLIAMSBURG, KY – The fourth-seeded Patriots punched their ticket to the NAIA National Championship Final Site for the third consecutive season Saturday afternoon, defeating William Carey 95-68 inside the O. Wayne Rollins Center in the NAIA Second Round. Cumberlands raced out to a blistering start and never looked back, improving to 25-7 on the year and advancing to Kansas City.
 
Brant Smithers lit up the scoreboard, leading the Patriots with a game-high 31 points on 10-of-14 shooting, including 8-of-11 from three. Kyle Duke added 24 points and 12 rebounds for his first double-double of the year, Javecckio Thomas finished with 17 points, nine boards, and four blocks and Anthony Harris posted a 11-point, 10-rebound double-double, adding three blocks as well. Tanner Walton poured in nine points while grabbing seven rebounds and Andrew McConnell contributed six points. Malachi Robinson finished with six as nine Patriots scored in the win.
 
Cumberlands seized control immediately, opening the game on a 35-6 run to bury the Crusaders early, nailing seven triples in the first nine minutes. Kyle Duke opened the scoring with a three before McConnell added another triple to make it 8-3. From there the Patriots erupted offensively. Duke scored inside and Thomas finished at the rim before Smithers caught fire from beyond the arc. Smithers knocked down four threes during the run, including consecutive triples that pushed the lead to 28-6. Anthony Harris added a fast-break layup and Walton scored inside as Cumberlands extended the margin to 35-6.
 
William Carey briefly halted the surge, but the Patriots maintained full control through the remainder of the half. Smithers continued to score from deep and Duke added a jumper late in the period as UC carried a 43-25 advantage into the locker room.
 
The Crusaders made a small push early in the second half, trimming the deficit to 47-33, but Cumberlands quickly responded. Duke knocked down a three and Harris converted inside to push the lead back to double digits. Midway through the half, Walton added a layup and Duke connected again from the perimeter to stretch the advantage past 20.
 
The Patriots continued to pull away down the stretch. Smithers drilled another three with just over nine minutes remaining to make it 72-44, and Harris followed with a dunk to extend the margin further. Thomas later threw down a fast-break dunk and McConnell added a basket in the closing minutes as Cumberlands built a lead as large as 38. Abraham Ibezimakor and Kyler McLendon added a pair of baskets in the final minutes before closing out the 95-68 victory.
 
Cumberlands shot 49.3 percent from the field and connected on 16-of-35 three-point attempts while outrebounding William Carey 57-21. The Patriots scored 17 second-chance points and forced 12 turnovers in the win.
 
With the victory, Cumberlands advances to the NAIA National Championship Final Site in Kansas City, Missouri for the third straight season. They will take on top-seeded Grace who advanced out of their First and Second Round Bracket. Gametimes are not yet scheduled, but will be next Friday, March 20^th.
 
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