WINONA LAKE, Indiana – A record-tying afternoon from beyond the arc helped Cedarville University (CU) clinch their third (2012, 2019) NCCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship in program history, as the Yellow Jackets rolled over No. 2 Wayland Baptist University 88-72 on Saturday, March 23 in Winona Lake, Indiana.
 
Cedarville came out of the blocks red hot in the national championship game, nailing three shots from long distance in less than five minutes to go ahead 13-7, but the Pioneers answered with a pair of triples of their own to tie the game at 13 apiece with 14:32 left in the first half. The threes continued to fly, including a duo of makes from deep by Timothy Davis, and the Jackets went ahead 24-16 with 9:56 left in the opening stanza. Meikkel Murray picked up a pair of buckets to cut into the deficit for the Pioneers, but another three from Grant Whisman put Cedarville ahead 35-31 at the intermission. 

Wayland Baptist tied it up with a quick 7-3 burst early in the second half, but a three-pointer by Chris Rogers and an and-1 connection by Anthony Ruffolo pushed the Jackets back ahead 48-40 with 15:47 left in the game. The Yellow Jackets continued to make it rain inside the Manahan Orthopaedic Captial Center, as three balls from Rogers and Kyle Thomas swelled the Cedarville lead to 68-52 with 8:36 remaining in the contest. The Jackets were unconcious from three, and with 3:30 left in the contest, Rogers hit the 17th three-pointer of the night for Cedarville, tying the NCCAA record for the most made three-pointers made in a single game at the NCCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championships set by Lee University in 1992 and 1993. The Yellow Jackets continued to pull away, and when the horn sounded, Cedarville claimed their third NCCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship in school history with an 88-72. Rogers scored 20 points and made six three-pointers, while Whisman scored 20 points as well with four three-pointers of his own.

The Yellow Jackets had to battle their way out of the opening round on Wednesday, scoring 53 points in the second half to hold off No. 8 Alice Lloyd College 87-73. Cedarville shot 55.9% from the field in the second stanza, led by 24 points including five makes from beyond the arc by Whisman in the win. In the semifinals, it was déjà vu for the Jackets, as they found themselves down 40-35 at halftime to No. 5 Clinton College. Cedarville responded with another 53-point second stanza, shooting 54.1% from the field in the final frame as they held off the Golden Bears for the 88-83 win. Jayvon Maughmer paced his squad with 17 points and a trio of triples. 
 
Cedarville’s Jayvon Maughmer earned the honor of Tournament Most Outstanding Player. See a complete list of awards including All-Tournament, Scholar-Athletes, and more here.
 
Full results and box scores from each game are posted here.