1997 Championship

1997 NAIA D-II National Championship Game at Northwest Nazarene Nampa, Idaho

Bethel 95, Siena Heights (MI) 94

Bethel stuck to its formula to become the NAIA’s first two-time Division II national champion. Play a great game, then let a senior come up with the winning shot.

This year, Randy Romer finished his career by making a shot that delivered Bethel’s fourth national title in six seasons.

The Pilots motored through the tournament in record-setting fashion. In the first round, they set tournament marks for points in a game (123) and tied the school record for most points in a half (73) by defeating Green Mountain (VT),123-75. In the semi-finals against Western Baptist (OR), David Haverstick’s tip-in with :00.8 left put Bethel up by two, 80-78.

In the quarter-finals, Bethel bounced Spring Arbor, 94-83. Up next was William Jewel, whom the Pilots beat in the 1995 semi-finals.

History repeated as Bethel won, 99-73.

That set up a final featuring two of the best small-college basketball teams in the Midwest. Siena Heights (MI) beat Tabor (KS) – the same Tabor that upset the Pilots in the second round of the 1996 tournament – in the semi-finals, 89-80.

In a game with more ‘back and forth’ than debate on what’s wrong with the Cubs, the Saints led, 87-82, with 3:34 left. The Pilots rallied back, however. David Haverstick’s two free throws with 1:34 put Bethel on top, 90-89. Jeff Clay’s put-back bucket resulted in a three-point play and the Pilots were on top by four, 93-89, with :47.9 to go.

But Siena Heights had plans of its own. Anthony Staffney hit one free throw to draw Siena Heights to within one. The Saint pulled the rebound of the second attempt, but Swanson drew a charging foul with :22 left. The Pilots had the ball and a three-point lead with just over a third of a minute left.

But that 22 ticks was an eternity.

The Saints turned up the heat on the full-court press. Romer was trapped in the corner that led to a turnover and a Siena Heights lay-up by Sam Lofton with :12 to go. Again, the Pilots tried to inbound the ball. A pass to half-court was saved by Swanson, but the Saints came up with the ball near its basket. Lofton hit a 10-foot jumper to put Siena Heights on top, 94-93, with :12 left.

Bethel inbounded the ball, got it over half-court and called a time-out with :07 on the clock. A play was designed to hit Swanson on the far block. As the play unfurled, the Saints sagged in on Swanson, making the pass too risky. Jeff Clay hit Romer, who broke to the ball. Romer caught the pass on the right wing, near the three-point arc. The senior from LaGrange turned, saw the lane open up, and headed for the hole.

His running 12-footer from just inside the free throw line circled the rim, and fell safely through with :03 on the clock.

But Siena Heights wasn’t about to concede. Dennis Winston whipped a half-court pass to Lofton, who headed for an apparent game-winning lay-up. Contested by Clay, Romer and Swanson, the shot came off the front of the rim. The Pilots became the first two-time NAIA D-II national champions.

Swanson earned tournament Most Valuble Player and National Player of the Year honors. Clay and Ryan Bales were also named to the all tournament team. Lightfoot was awarded his second national coach of the year award in three seasons.

BETHEL (95): Swanson 18, Romer 18, Clay 15, Hobson 13, Haverstick 10, Bales 10, Watson 5, Brand 6, Edison 0, Taylor 0. TOTALS: 36 19-25 95.

SIENA HEIGHTS (94): Sanford 15, Carroll 0, Dettling 24, Staffney 20, Johnson 20, Lofton 4, Winston 2, Bennett 0, Backus 1, Williams 8. TOTALS: 38 10-16 94.

Half-time: Bethel 44, Siena Heights 41.

3-Point Goals: Bethel 4, Siena Heights 8. Rebounds: Bethel 48, Siena Heights 43.

Reords: Siena Heights 31-8, Bethel: 34-5

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