Minneapolis, MN – One year after falling in the national championship game on their home court, #1 North Central University finished the story, knocking off #2 Spurgeon College 101-92 to claim their first NCCAA DII Men’s Basketball National Championship in program history.
 
Championship: #1 North Central University 101, #2 Spurgeon College 92

• Neither squad could score for the first two minutes of the contest, but a pair of layups from Carrington McNeal and a Tanner Holtman three put NCU on top 7-0. A pair of jumpers from Diego Sanchez cut the Rams lead down to just two, and a Joseph Allen layup gave Spurgeon their first lead, going on top 20-19 halfway through the opening frame.
• Another Holtman three put NCU ahead, and a Josh Hoffman dunk swelled the North Central advantage to 37-30. A pair of shots fell for Sanchez to cut the lead to three for the Rams, but a Carmello McNeal shot at the halftime horn put North Central ahead 47-39 at halftime.
• Holtman and the Rams came out firing in the second half, as he nailed three big shots from beyond the arc to open the second stanza, pushing NCU ahead 60-47. Holtman continued to pour it on, as he broke the North Central University program record with his tenth three of the game, and the Rams pushed forward 72-57.
• Spurgeon did not go away quietly, as Drew Middleton nailed the first three of the game for the Knights, and then a dunk from Joseph Allen and another Drew Middleton triple cut the NCU lead to just 86-74 with 4:34 left in the game. 
• Spurgeon got as close as 91-87, but a layup from Remy Wedgeworth-Brown was the dagger, as North Central took home their first ever NCCAA DII Men’s Basketball National Championship with a 101-92 win. 
• Holtman scored 33 points for NCU, shooting a blistering 11-13 from three. Carmello McNeal added 18 points for the Rams in the win.

 
Third Place Game: #4 Crown College 94, #3 Manhattan Christian College 67
 
Fourth-seeded Crown College shot 46.8 percent from the field and 34.3 percent from three, as the Polars rolled to a 94-67 win over #3 Manhattan Christian College to win today’s third-place game.

• Both teams emptied the bench early, and a pair of threes from Jackson DiBona and Carter Behne put Crown ahead 32-30. Landon Gray answered with a triple of his own, but a pair of layups from Tyrus Buckner and another Carter Behne three gave the Polars a 42-32 lead at halftime.
• Carter Behne stayed hot from deep, nailing a trip of shots early in the second half to put Crown ahead 54-34. John Grigsby added a pair of three-pointers as well to keep the Polars ahead.
•  A dunk from Davis Rokey cut the lead down to just 13 late in the game, but a pair of shots from Micah Ladd kept Crown on top, and the Polars rolled to the 94-67 win and a third-place finish
• Buckner finished his career for the Polars in style, scoring 31 points in his final game in a Crown College uniform. Carter Behne scored 23 points, connecting on four shots from distance while hauling down six boards.

 
Fifth Place Game: #5 Grace Christian University 79, #7 Bob Jones University 71
 
A triple-double from Zac Yorke helped push #5 Grace Christian University to a fifth-place finish at the 2025 NCCAA DII Men’s Basketball National Championship, defeating #7 Bob Jones University 79-71.

• The lead bounced back-and-forth early, but Quay Humphries nailed a pair of threes to put Grace Christian ahead. 
• A steal and a slam from Shad Vander Hart tied the contest, but a three-ball from Graydon Hutchinson and a nice pass from Hutchinson to set up Aiden Burns put the Tigers on top 37-29 at the break.
• Vander Hart recorded yet another emphatic slam dunk to open the second half for Bob Jones, but a triple by Keys Omari put Grace Christian ahead 42-37.
• Grace Christian continued to pull away, as an alley oop pass from Hutchinson to Omari put the Tigers on top 63-52. With just under five minutes left in the game, Zac Yorke found Burns for a three-ball in the corner, and Grace Christian took the fifth-place contest 79-71.
• In his final game for the Tigers, Yorke recorded a triple-double, tallying 13 points, 15 rebounds, and handed out 10 assists.

Carmello McNeal from North Central University was named Tournament MVP. The rest of the All-Tournament Team can be found here.
 
About the NCCAA
Established in 1968, the National Christian College Athletic Association uses intercollegiate athletics to further the Great Commission and is committed to equipping student-athletes and coaches to make a positive impact for Christ. The NCCAA currently holds 23 national championship events, along with two national invitationals for 92 member schools across 28 states and two Canadian provinces. For more information on the NCCAA, visit our website, thenccaa.org, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter/X, and Instagram at @thenccaa.