The Dallas Baptist Patriot Basketball Team won a 107-104 triple overtime thriller against Roberts Wesleyan Friday night to advance to the NCCAA National Championship Game. The Patriots improve to 19-12 on the season with the victory.

Even through the first seven minutes of action, the Raiders used a surge midway through the first half to take an eight point lead over the Patriots, 22-14, with 9:19 left.

The Patriots' aggressive play on offense yielded ten free throw attempts throughout the first half, but it wasn't enough to cut through the Raiders lead as RWC took a 37-27 advantage at the break.

Three early turnovers and an offensive foul by the Raiders to start the second half opened the door for the Patriots as Junior Jordan McGowen scored four points to cut the deficit to six, 37-31.

The Raiders were quick to respond as they went on a 10-2 run five minutes into the half, adding to their lead, 47-33.

Midway through the second half, with Roberts Wesleyan still clinging to a 15-point lead, the Patriots could only manage to trade baskets with the Raiders. Finally, Senior Braxton Adamson ignited an 18-2 run for the Patriots with two consecutive jump shots and a pair of free throws. The run was capped by Sophomore Nick Fox's layup at the 1:35 mark that gave DBU a 78-73 lead.

The Raiders responded with five unanswered points to close out the game, connecting on a free throw with nine seconds remaining to force the first overtime.

Both teams started the first overtime period scoring four points apiece, but it was RWC that took an 84-82 lead with 1:32 left. Adamson gave DBU their first lead of the overtime period on the next possession, draining a three-pointer to give DBU a one point lead with just over a minute remaining.

Down two with 38 seconds left, Junior T.J. Clark was fouled and connected on both free throw attempts to give the one point advantage back to DBU. However, a Raider free throw with 28 seconds left tied the game once again and forced a second overtime.

Clark came up big once again in the second overtime period, as his layup with 36 seconds remaining, tied the game for the eighth time and forced a third overtime period.

Fox scored the first two points of the third overtime, and then drew a charge on the defensive end to give the Patriots the 97-95 lead and the ball with 3:51 remaining.

Tied at 97-97, the Patriots finally took the lead for good on a pair of free throws from Adamson. Adamson then drained a crucial shot from behind the arc with just over a minute remaining, giving the Patriots a four point advantage.

After two made free throws by the Raiders, DBU was able to force a Raider turnover with ten seconds to go. After a pair of free throws from Adamson, the Raiders drained a three-pointer to pull within one, 105-104, with 3.3 seconds left to play.

The Raiders were forced to foul, and Clark connected on both of his free throws for the Patriots to extend their lead to three, 107-104, with 2.4 seconds left. However, time ran out on the Raiders as DBU escaped with the narrow, three point win.

Adamson finished the game with 26 points, followed by Fox who ended the night with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Clark chipped in 16 while McGowen added 14 points and nine rebounds. Whitmire rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Patriots as he finished with 10 points.

The Patriots will now face Spring Arbor Saturday evening in the NCCAA National Championship. Live coverage of the game can be found on the Live Stats page on the DBU Athletic Website. Game time on Saturday is set for 8:00 p.m.