FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- Austin Fox hit the second of two free throws with 1.7 seconds left as No. 2 Saint Francis (Ind.) won a wild one 81-80 over No. 5 Indiana Wesleyan University men’s basketball in the Crossroads League Tournament Championship. IWU is now 28-5 and will learn the NAIA DII National Championship draw tomorrow evening.

Game Vitals

• Score:  Indiana Wesleyan - 80   |   Saint Francis - 81
• Records:  Indiana Wesleyan 28-5   |   Saint Francis 29-4
• NAIA Top- 25 Rank:  Indiana Wesleyan - No. 5   |   Saint Francis - No. 2
• Location:   Hutzell Athletic Center   |   University of Saint Francis   |   Fort Wayne, Indiana 
• Brief:  Austin Fox hit the second of two free throws with 1.7 seconds left as No. 2 Saint Francis (Ind.) won a wild one 81-80 over No. 5 Indiana Wesleyan University men’s basketball in the Crossroads League Tournament Championship. IWU is now 28-5 and will learn the NAIA DII National Championship draw tomorrow evening.
   

What Went Down

• First half action featured five ties and seven lead changes. Neither team led by more than five points in the opening 20 minutes.
• Saint Francis’ Kegan Comer, who averages 12.0 points per game, filled up the stat sheet with 18 first half points.
• Early in the second half Saint Francis went on a 12-2 run to lead 53-42 with 13:46 remaining. The 11 point lead would be the largest of the game.
• Indiana Wesleyan immediately responded with the next 13 points to take a 55-53 lead just two minutes later.
• Trailing by five points with under two minutes remaining, Bob Peters (JR/Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) scored and was fouled. He missed the free throw but was fouled again as he grabbed the rebound. Peters hit both free throws for a 4-point possession and trim the deficit to 76-75 with 1:40 to go.
• The teams traded buckets on their next possessions. Then USF’s Austin Fox sank a pair of free throws for an 80-77 advantage with 35 seconds on the clock.
• Bob Peters launched a 3-point try but the shot drew only iron. A fortunate IWU hop took the long rebound out to Peters on the opposite side of the key and he calmly sank this 3-point attempt to tie the score 80-80 with 17 seconds to go.
• USF held for the final shot and Austin Fox drove the lane with the clock winding down. A foul was called on Josh Mawhorr (SR/Muncie, Ind.) with 1.7 seconds left. Fox hit the second of two free throws. Following a timeout, Indiana Wesleyan attempted to throw the ball near midcourt but Fox intercepted the pass to secure the 81-80 victory for the Cougars.
• Bob Peters led Indiana Wesleyan with 22 points in which 19 of those came in the second half.
• Jonny Marlin (SR/Greenwood, Ind.) added 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists while Lane Mahurin (JR/Rockville, Ind.) finished with 12 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assists. Nate Bubash (JR/Munster, Ind.) came off the bench to added 9 points and 10 boards.
• The Wildcats ended the evening with more field goals made and 3-pointers made than the Cougars. USF took advantage of a 28-9 margin at the free throw line.
• Kegan Comer scored a career-high 32 points for Saint Francis while Austin Fox had a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds.
  
   

Coach’s Corner

• “This is the tough part about coaching, it has its highs and its lows. I feel for the guys in the locker room. They fought and they battled and gave themselves a chance. If you lose by 1 or by 20 points it stings. But we will regroup and there are things we can learn from this. We have guys in that locker room that have won a national championship so they are not happy with a second place. There is disappointment but they have a lot to be proud of.
   

Extra! Extra!

• Saint Francis defeated Indiana Wesleyan three times this season.
• The Cougars will likely be the new No. 1 team in NAIA Division II. They were ranked No. 2 in the national poll and No. 1 Saint Francis (Ill.) lost in the semifinals of their league tournament.
• The Crossroads League Tournament Championship is the second ever for Saint Francis. Their first came in a win over Indiana Wesleyan in 2011.
• Indiana Wesleyan has played in five of the past eight Crossroads League Tournament championship games.
  
   

Next Time Out

• Indiana Wesleyan will learn their draw for the NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball National Championship on Wednesday. The official draw will be released at 7 p.m. with the national tournament beginning on March 9 in Point Lookout, Missouri.