Clockwise from top left: Daulton Hommes, Coach Ryan Looney, Sterling Somers and the Point Loma Fans at The Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana.
All Photos: David Arthur via PLNU Athletics
Point Loma to Play for D2 National Championship
March 28, 2019
Whatcom County will be tuning in to the NCAA Division 2 men's basketball National Championship Saturday with plenty to cheer for. Lynden's Daulton Hommes and Sterling Somers and Point Loma Nazarene will be playing for the title.
The 6th seeded PLNU Sea Lions advanced with an 81-71 semifinal victory over 7 seed Southern Indiana Thursday at The Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana. Point Loma will play the top seed in undefeated Northwest Missouri State Saturday for for all the marbles.
Despite playing just 30 minutes due to foul trouble, Hommes led the Sea Lions with 20 points on 6-of-13 shooting, including 3 triple-shots. The junior, who was named the NCAA Division 2 Player of the year Thursday, added 5 rebounds and was a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line.
Speaking on the CBS Sports Network postgame show, Hommes was asked what is was like to play in front of and quiet the big crowd rooting for Southern Indiana.
"Playing in this big environment, it's kind of what you dream of and then to win this game was awesome," said Hommes.
Somers scored 9 points off the bench, hitting all four of his shots. the junior also added 1 rebound, 2 assists and 1 steal in 25 minutes of action.
The Sea Lions(31-4) lead by as many as 14 in the first half, but saw their lead slip to just 1 with a 31-30 lead over the home town favorite Screaming Eagles at halftime. Point Loma would never trail in the second half despite a valiant effort by Southen Indiana guard Alex Stein who finished with 22 points to become the schools all-time leading scorer.
Northwest Missouri State (36-0) is up next in the title game. The Bearcats beat Saint Anselm College 76-53 in the earlier semifinal on Thursday. Northwest Missouri State won the national championship in 2017, while this is the first time Point Loma will play for an NCAA D2 National Championship in any sport.
Saturday's game is scheduled to tip-off at 12:00pm Pacific and can be seen on CBS.
- Doug Lange
*information from NCAA.com & plnusealions.com used in this story.
Point Loma junior Sterling Somers fights for a rebound versus Southern Indiana. PHOTO: David Arthur via PLNU Athletics
Point Loma junior Daulton Hommes shoots a three-ball versus Southern Indiana. PHOTO: David Arthur via PLNU Athletics
