THE LEAD
DBU punched their ticket to the Heartland Conference Tournament title game for the second consecutive year following a 72-64 win over Lubbock Christian in Saturday's semifinal game in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  Led by Xavier Ledet's double-double that included 12 points and 15 rebounds, along with Myles Johnson's team-high 16 points, the Patriots (21-9) held off the Chaparrals (19-11) to advance to Sunday's championship game.
 
Carter Brown, Patrick Burke, and Julian Miranda each scored 11 points to join Johnson and Ledet in double-figures.  Lubbock Christian's redshirt-senior Tyler Rogers led all scorers with 25 points in the final game of his career.

DBU wasted little time in the game's opening moments, as the Patriots raced out to a 7-0 advantage.  Lubbock Christian responded with a 17-8 run of their own to take their first lead, 17-15, near the midway point of the first half.

A 21-13 run by the Patriots over the next 10 minutes, capped off by a Myles Johnson three-pointer with four seconds left on the clock, gave DBU a 36-28 lead going into the locker room.  Johnson's shot from downtown was his third made three-pointer in the first half, as DBU finished 6-of-14 from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes.

In the second half, the Patriots opened their lead to as many 13 points, going up 50-37 with 14:21 left to play.  LCU would not go away quietly though, as the Chaps drew to within four points at 54-50 with 7:05 remaining.

That would be as close as LCU would come to the Patriots, as DBU stretched their lead back to double-digits and eventually closed out the game at the free-throw line, going 6-for-8 from the charity stripe in the final two minutes.

THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- After falling twice to Lubbock Christian during the regular-season, DBU defeated Lubbock Christian to advance to the Heartland Conference Championship game.

- With the win over LCU, the Patriots have won six straight games.

- DBU is 5-0 in the Heartland Conference Tournament since last year's run to the tournament title.
 
DBU HEAD COACH BLAKE FLICKNER ON A GREAT TEAM EFFORT THAT LED TO A WIN OVER LCU
"I'm so proud of our guys tonight.  Their selflessness was on full display and we had to respond again to different strategy from LCU.  Xavier was unbelievable and was the difference maker tonight.  Myles shot the ball really well also.  The thing I am most proud of though is the way we defended."
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
15 – Xavier Ledet's 15 rebounds are tied for the third most in a single-game in school history.
2 – DBU held the Chaps to just 2-of-11 shooting from three-point range.
14 – Both teams scored 14 points off of turnovers.
 
UP NEXT
DBU will face the winner of tonight's semifinal game between UA Fort Smith and St. Mary's in Sunday's championship game.  Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.